The Major League Baseball Players Association rejected MLB’s latest proposal for the designated universal hitter and an extended playoff format, ESPN sources confirmed.
The news was first reported by MLB Network.
The position of the union has been over time that it did not want to talk about a universal DH trade – which benefits a group of players – in exchange for extended playoffs. However, MLB included the two articles in its proposal and this concept was rejected, according to sources.
Universal DH and the extended playoff format were implemented for 2020 during the regular season shortened by 60 games due to the coronavirus pandemic.
NL teams have used a DH when playing in AL parks since the league game was established in 1997.
MLB has implemented a 16-team playoff format for the 2020 postseason. The top two teams in each division, plus the two remaining teams with the best records in each league, made up the eight teams in the American and national leagues. The winners of the division were the first three seeds from each league, the teams on the second place being classified as seeds from 4 to 6, and the rest of the two qualifications ranked at no.
The working relationship between the two sides continues to be strained, compared to much of the interaction since the 1994-95 players’ strike resolution. Last summer, negotiations on the 2020 truncated season and player compensation were publicly extended over many weeks. As MLB and the union try to resolve their unresolved issues before the 2021 season, this is on the horizon: the current Collective Bargaining Agreement will expire in December 2021.
ESPN’s Buster Olney contributed to this report.