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56-704: The Division Series was implemented in 1981 as a one-off tournament because of a midseason strike , with the first place teams before the strike taking on the teams in first place after the strike. In 1981, a split-season format forced the first ever divisional playoff series, in which the New York Yankees won the Eastern Division series over the Milwaukee Brewers (who were in the American League until 1998) in five games while in

112-600: A 15-month battle with a non-operable brain tumor . Former All-Star Tony Clark , the deputy executive director, was named executive director on December 2, 2013, becoming the first former major league player to lead the union. In 2016, the MLBPA celebrated its 50th anniversary as a union, commemorating the event at the 2016 All-Star Game with a golden anniversary logo. In 1968, the Major League Baseball Players Association negotiated

168-478: A Game 5 is needed, the teams return to the higher seed's field. When MLB added a second wild card team in 2012 , the Division Series re-adopted the 2–3 format due to scheduling conflicts. However, it reverted to the 2–2–1 format starting the next season, 2013 . In the sortable table below, teams are ordered first by number of wins, then by number of appearances, and finally by year of first appearance. In

224-682: A comprehensive policy addressing issues such as protecting the legal rights of players, treating violations seriously, holding players accountable through appropriate disciplinary measures and providing resources for the intervention and care of victims, families and the players themselves. The terms of this joint policy cover four primary areas: Treatment & Intervention; Investigations; Discipline; and Training, Education & Resources. In June 2016, executive director Tony Clark and MLB commissioner Rob Manfred , along with Curtis Granderson , Andrew McCutchen , Marquis Grissom , and Ken Griffey Jr. , announced major initiatives within youth baseball in

280-432: A division rival win both halves. On August 20, Major League Baseball revised the rules so that if a team won both halves of the season, it would face the second season runner-up instead. Facing a playoff no matter their finish in the second half, the first-half winners lacked incentive (as opposed to the minor leagues , where if the same team did win both halves it was given a bye into the next round) to repeat, and finished

336-483: A prelude to play resuming on August 10. The National League beat the American League 5–4. When play resumed, attendance dropped in 17 of 24 cities and television ratings slumped sharply. Despite the disgruntled fans, the All-Star Game, which was played on a Sunday instead of the usual Tuesday, had its largest attendance (72,086), due to the large seating capacity of Municipal Stadium. Due to the two-month strike,

392-590: A press conference held at Citi Field . On top of jointly donating over $ 2 million several youth-focused initiatives supported by current and former Major League player, other major initiatives included financial contributions to youth baseball projects and the creation of a partnership with Positive Coaching Alliance for the training of coaches and administrators from the Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities program. As of 2023, Major League Baseball

448-416: A settlement being reached to award players a total of $ 280 million in damages for the collusion. Under Fehr, the MLBPA dealt with a 32-day lockout by MLB owners in 1990. The MLBPA participated in a 232-day players strike in 1994 and 1995 . While Fehr led the MLBPA, player salaries rose from an average of over $ 400,000 to $ 3 million. The Collective Bargaining Agreements in 2002 and 2006 were reached without

504-461: A signed contract with a Major League club are eligible for membership in the Association. The MLBPA has three major divisions: a labor union, a business (Players Choice Group Licensing Program), and a charitable foundation (Major League Baseball Players Trust). The MLBPA primarily serves as a collective bargaining representative for all Major League Baseball players. On August 28, 2022,

560-503: A slightly greater advantage. In order to spread out the Division Series games for broadcast purposes, the two ALDS series follow one of two off-day schedules. Starting in 2007, after consulting the MLBPA , MLB has decided to allow the team with the best record in the league that wins the All-Star Game to choose whether to use the seven-day schedule (1-2-off-3-4-off-5) or the eight-day schedule (1-off-2-off-3-4-off-5). The team only gets to choose

616-503: A strike by the players or a lockout by the owners. This was a period of 16 years without a work stoppage by either side. Fehr was also a contributor in the creation of the World Baseball Classic international baseball tournament. In 2009, Donald Fehr resigned from the position. The players selected Michael Weiner , who had worked for the union since 1988, as his replacement. On November 21, 2013, Weiner died after

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672-539: A trade union and meant to protect the interests of the players. President Executive Director Executive Director December 1, 1985 – June 22, 2009 The organization that would eventually become the MLBPA was conceived in 1953 , but it was not officially recognized as a union until 1966 . That year the newly recognized union hired Marvin Miller from the United Steel Workers of America to head

728-642: A week in salaries while the owners suffered a total loss of $ 72 million. The executive board of the Major League Baseball Players Association voted unanimously to strike on May 29 due to the unresolved issue of free agent compensation. The deadline was extended briefly, however, after the Players' Association's unfair labor complaint was heard by the National Labor Relations Board . The strike

784-429: Is no reseeding even if the 6-seeded wild card advances. Home-field advantage goes to the team with the better regular season record (or head-to-head record if there is a tie between two or more teams), except for the wild-card team, which never receives the home field advantage. Beginning in 2003, MLB has implemented a new rule to give the team from the league that wins the All-Star Game with the best regular season record

840-511: Is the only major professional sports league in North America that does not have a salary cap ; the MLS , NBA , NFL , and NHL all implement some sort of salary cap. MLB does have a luxury tax that penalizes clubs that exceed the designated amount for that season. The MLBPA was initially opposed to random steroid testing, claiming it to be a violation of the privacy of players. After

896-662: The COVID-19 pandemic . Eight teams qualified from the American League: the top two teams in each division plus the next two best records among the remaining teams. These eight teams played a best-of-three-game series to determine placement in the ALDS. The regular format returned for the 2021 season. As of 2022, the Yankees have played in and won the most division series, with thirteen wins in twenty-two appearances. In 2015,

952-718: The Players Choice Awards , Volunteers of America, and MLB Players STEM League are funded through the foundation. In 2003, the Major League Baseball Players Trust and Volunteers of America created the Action Team National Youth Volunteer Program to recruit and train high school students to become volunteers in their communities. The Players Choice Awards is an award ceremony held to recognize each season's best performers, as chosen by

1008-699: The Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros were the final American League teams to make their first appearances in the ALDS. The Astros had been in the National League through 2012, and had played in the National League Division Series (NLDS) seven times. The Astros are the only team to win the ALDS in six consecutive seasons. The Yankees record of four consecutive victories was broken by the Astros with their victory in

1064-573: The "Season(s)" column, bold years indicate winning appearances. 1981 Major League Baseball strike The 1981 Major League Baseball strike was the first work stoppage in Major League Baseball since the 1972 Major League Baseball strike that resulted in regular season games being cancelled. Overall, it was the fourth work stoppage since 1972, but actions in 1973, 1976, and 1980 did not result in any regular season games being cancelled. The strike began on June 12 and forced

1120-563: The 1994 season, the postseason was cancelled that year due to the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike . In 1995, the first season to feature a division series, the Western Division champion Seattle Mariners defeated the wild card New York Yankees three games to two, while the Central Division champion Cleveland Indians defeated the Eastern Division champion Boston Red Sox in a three-game sweep. From 1994 to 2011,

1176-538: The 2021 ALDS against the Chicago White Sox . The ALDS is a best-of-five series where the divisional winner with the best winning percentage in the regular season hosts the winner of the Wild Card Series between the top two wild card teams in one matchup, and the divisional winner with the second best winning percentage hosts the winner of the series between the lowest-seeded divisional winner and

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1232-421: The Division Series was to face the number 1 seed, regardless whether or not they are in the same division. The two series winners move on to the best-of-seven ALCS. Beginning with the 2022 season, the winner between the lowest-ranked division winner and lowest-ranked wild card team faces the number 2 seed division winner in the Division Series, while the 4 v. 5 wild card winner still faces the number 1 seed, as there

1288-489: The MLBPA holds exclusive right to use, license and sublicense the names, numbers, nicknames, likenesses, signatures and other personal indicia (known as "publicity rights") of active Major League Baseball players who are its members for use in connection with any product, brand, service or product line when more than two players are involved. Among its other functions, the Players Choice licensing program also protects

1344-512: The MLBPA publicly launched a campaign to help Minor League Baseball players unionize. On September 9, 2022, MLB voluntarily recognized the MLBPA as the union for over 5,500 minor league baseball players playing rookie ball to Triple-A . The MLBPA's Players Choice group licensing program utilizes collective marketing to assist licensees and sponsors who want to associate their brands and products with that of Major League players, teams, and coaches. Through an individual agreement with each player,

1400-499: The MLBPA supported them by challenging the reserve clause which was used by team owners to bind players to one team. On December 23, 1975, arbitrator Peter Seitz ruled in favor of the players. Following the Seitz decision , the modern free agent system was created, and the strength of the union was immeasurably increased. Players and owners failed to come to terms over free agent compensation, which led to another strike in 1981 . In

1456-541: The National League that season—and thus would have won their divisions under normal circumstances. The Cardinals received some vindication the following year when they won the World Series ; the Reds did not make the postseason again until 1990 , when they won the franchise's most recent World Series title. In contrast to the Reds' and Cardinals' bad luck, the defending American League champion Kansas City Royals made

1512-572: The Western Division, the Oakland Athletics swept the Kansas City Royals (the only team with an overall losing record to ever make the postseason). In 1994, it was returned permanently when Major League Baseball (MLB) restructured each league into three divisions, but with a different format than in 1981. Each of the division winners, along with one wild card team, qualify for the Division Series. Despite being planned for

1568-533: The cancellation of 713 games (or 38 percent of the Major League schedule) in the middle of the regular season . The two sides reached an agreement on July 31, and play resumed on August 9 with the All-Star Game , with regular season play resuming one day later. An estimated US$ 146 million was lost in player salaries, ticket sales, broadcast revenues, and concession revenues. The players lost $ 4 million

1624-452: The first-ever Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in professional sports. Several agreements have been negotiated since the original agreement, the latest of which expired on Dec. 1, 2021. The expiration of the CBA resulted in the first player lockout since 1990. All transactions were halted as a result of the lockout and players were forbidden from contacting team officials until a new agreement

1680-530: The late 1980s and early 1990s the MLBPA filed collusion charges, arguing that team owners had violated the collective bargaining agreement in the 1985–1987 seasons. The MLBPA won each case, resulting in "second look" free agents, and over $ 269 million in owner fines. After Miller retired, Ken Moffett became the new executive director in December 1982, but in November 1983 he was dismissed, and Marvin Miller

1736-421: The league more playoff revenue) seemed to cheapen the results of the regular season. As first proposed, if a team won its division in both halves of the season, then it would play the team with the second best record overall (first and second half). An Orioles fan, J. Thomas Codd, pointed out, the arrangement would give a team with a good overall record an incentive to lose games against the first-half winner to help

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1792-411: The lowest-seeded wild card team. (From 2012 to 2021, the wild card team was assigned to play the divisional winner with the best winning percentage in the regular season in one series, and the other two division winners met in the other series. From 1998 to 2011, if the wild-card team and the division winner with the best record were from the same division, the wild-card team played the division winner with

1848-493: The negotiations were so bitter that when a settlement was finally reached, Players Association representative Marvin Miller and the owners' negotiator Ray Grebey refused to pose with each other for the traditional "peace ceremony" photograph. Major League Baseball resumed on August 9 with the All-Star Game in Cleveland's Municipal Stadium . The All-Star Game, which was originally scheduled to be held on July 14, now served as

1904-463: The organization, serving as executive director until 1983 . During Miller's tenure, base salaries, pension funds, licensing rights, and revenues increased. In 1968 , Miller negotiated the first collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with the team owners, which raised the minimum salary from $ 6,000 to $ 10,000 per year. The 1970 CBA included arbitration to resolve disputes. The major leagues saw their first player strike in 1972 , in opposition to

1960-482: The owners tried to create an equitable solution. So on August 6, the owners decided to split the 1981 season into two halves, with the first-place teams from each half in each division (or a wild card team if the same club won both halves) meeting in a best-of-five divisional playoff series (this playoff round, known as the Division Series was only used this season; it was not until 13 years later in 1994 that

2016-416: The owners' desire to save money. "They said they just didn't have any more money...fast-forward thirteen years and the highest paid players in the game, guys like Cal Ripken Jr. and Kirby Puckett , are now making $ 6 million a year. Ten times what I made. Where do you suppose the owners who didn't have any more money got that extra $ 5 million? Lotto?" He faulted both sides for the strike. "The players said it

2072-490: The owners' refusal to increase player pension funds. In 1974 , when Oakland owner Charlie Finley failed to make a $ 50,000 payment into an insurance annuity as called for in Catfish Hunter 's contract, the MLBPA took the case to arbitration . The arbitrator ruled that Hunter could be a free agent . When pitchers Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally had their 1974 contracts automatically renewed by their teams,

2128-407: The owners, it hurt the players, but mostly it hurt the game. Eventually, the game recovered. But it's like a player. Every time he's injured, it's harder to come back." MLBPA The Major League Baseball Players Association ( MLBPA ) is the labor union representing all current Major League Baseball players. All players, managers , coaches , and athletic trainers who hold or have held

2184-612: The player picks a salary number (a high one) and the owners pick a number (yes, a low one) and the arbitrator has to choose one number or the other and nothing in between. So, since the owners kept paying more and more to mediocre players, the averages kept going up and the arbitrators looked at the averages and usually went with the player's number, which raised the average some more." He cited as an example of this trend Ed Farmer , an "okay player" who got his salary raised from $ 70,000 in 1980 to $ 495,000 in 1981 after an arbitrator sided with him. "The averages keep climbing." Palmer also noted

2240-468: The players themselves. Each Players Choice Awards winner designates the charity of his choice to receive a grant from the Player's Trust. The MLBPA was not the first attempt to unionize baseball players. Earlier attempts had included: In 1898, Baltimore Orioles players John McGraw , Hughie Jennings , Joe Kelley , and Willie Keeler discussed the formation of "mutual defense organization" analogous to

2296-507: The postseason despite owning the fourth-best full-season record in their division and posting a losing record overall (50–53). Notably, the format allowed the second-half National League East champion Montreal Expos to make the playoffs, the only time the Expos franchise made the postseason in its 36-year stay in Montreal and its only postseason appearance of any kind until 2012 , long after

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2352-472: The reasons the owners doled out such hefty contracts from 1978 to 1981 (43 players each negotiated contracts worth over $ 1 million during this period) was that they were afraid of losing disgruntled stars in the free agency reentry draft. So the owners paid their players the so-called new going rate in order to keep them from going elsewhere. Jim Palmer observed the impact of arbitrators on the strike. "They [the owners] wanted an end to binding arbitration where

2408-568: The rights of players from exploitation by unauthorized parties. Major League Baseball players also formed the Players Trust, a charitable foundation that is the first of its kind in professional sports . Through the Players Trust, Major Leaguers contribute their time, money and fame to call attention to important issues affecting those in need and to help encourage others to get involved in their own communities. Many programs including Buses for Baseball, City Clinics, Medicines for Humanity,

2464-466: The round became permanent in MLB [it was first played in 1995, as the 1994 season ended prematurely because of another strike], when the league introduced the three-division format). The four survivors then played in the best-of-five League Championship Series . It was the first time that Major League Baseball used a split-season format since 1892. The split-season idea as put into practice (although garnering

2520-515: The schedule; the opponent is still determined by win–loss records. Initially, the best-of-5 series played in a 2–3 format, with the first two games set at home for the lower seed team and the last three for the higher seed. Since 1998 , the series has followed a 2–2–1 format, where the higher seed team plays at home in Games 1 and 2, the lower seed plays at home in Game 3 and Game 4 (if necessary), and if

2576-546: The second half of the season with a composite record of only three games above .500. Tommy John of the AL East –winning Yankees stated, "With the first-half divisional 'title' wrapped up, we lost our intensity." To make matters worse, the Cincinnati Reds ( National League West ) and St. Louis Cardinals ( National League East ) each failed to make the playoffs, even though they had the two best full-season records in

2632-430: The second-best record, and the remaining two division leaders played each other.) The two series winners move on to the best-of-seven ALCS. According to Nate Silver , the advent of this playoff series, and especially of the wild card, has caused teams to focus more on "getting to the playoffs" rather than "winning the pennant" as the primary goal of the regular season. From 2012 to 2021, the wild card team that advances to

2688-479: The signing team's roster (not including 12 "protected" players). The players maintained that any form of compensation would undermine the value of free agency. Although the strike was called by the players, many sportswriters and even fans placed most of the blame on the owners. Sports Illustrated reflected this particular opinion with the cover headline "Strike! The Walkout the Owners Provoked." One of

2744-436: The strike. On July 31, 1981, a compromise was reached. In the settlement, teams that lost a "premium" free agent could be compensated by drawing from a pool of players left unprotected from all of the clubs rather than just the signing club. Players agree to restricting free agency to players with six or more years of major league service. The settlement gave the owners a limited victory on the compensation issue. Reportedly,

2800-692: The team became the Washington Nationals . Ironically, the next time there was a significant players' strike , 13 years later in 1994, the Expos were the team most hurt by the season's abrupt end. The Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates ended up playing the fewest games of any team at 102. Meanwhile, the San Francisco Giants played the most at 111. Most teams finished with anywhere between 106 and 109 games. Palmer summed it up thusly: "The strike of 1981 lasted fifty-one days. It hurt

2856-556: The terms of the Basic Agreement, with players later being awarded $ 10.5 million. In 1989, arbitrator George Nicolau found that owners had violated the Basic Agreement on the second grievance, with players awarded $ 38 million. In 1988, the MLBPA filed another grievance against the owners for colluding to control player salaries. The MLBPA claims that the owners created an information bank to share information on players and restrain salaries. The MLBPA won this grievance in 1990, with

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2912-439: The wild card was given to the team in the American League with the best overall record that was not a division champion. Beginning with the 2012 season , a second wild card team was added, and the two wild card teams play a single-game playoff to determine which team would play in the ALDS. For the 2020 Major League Baseball season only, there was an expanded playoff format, owing to an abbreviated 60-game regular season due to

2968-524: Was about freedom. The owners said it was about fairness. The bottom line was it was about the bottom line." Reporters used Strat-O-Matic to simulate the delayed 1981 All-Star game inside Cleveland Stadium , with the scoreboard displaying the game's progress; the Strat-O-Matic set went to the Baseball Hall of Fame . Some newspapers used Strat-O-Matic to simulate other canceled games during

3024-402: Was called in response to the owners wanting to win back the prerogatives over the players. The owners had already lost at the bargaining table and in the courts on the issue of the free agency draft. At issue during the seven-week-long negotiations was the owners demanding compensation for losing a free agent player to another team. The compensation in question was a player who was selected from

3080-427: Was named interim director. Donald Fehr , who joined the MLBPA as general counsel in 1977, was named acting director in December 1983. The MLBPA under Fehr filed several grievances against MLB owners. In the late 1980s, MLB owners were accused of collusion to prevent player salaries from rising. The MLBPA filed grievances against the owners in 1986 and 1987. In 1987, arbitrator Tom Roberts found that owners had violated

3136-560: Was reached. The Joint Drug Agreement went into effect in December 2011 and is scheduled to terminate Dec. 1, 2016, the same date as the Basic Agreement. The prohibited substances section of the Joint Drug Agreement is updated annually. In August 2015, Major League Baseball and the MLBPA reached agreement on the Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy, and is intended to provide

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