Major League Baseball's 2027 season is under threat of a lockout with the current collective bargaining agreement set to expire on December 1, 2026. The Associated Press reported on November 1 that negotiations between MLB owners and the MLB Players Association have yet to produce a successor deal, raising the prospect of the sport's first work stoppage since the 2021-22 lockout that delayed the start of the 2022 season.
The existing five-year agreement, ratified in March 2022, runs through the end of the 2026 regular season and postseason. If a new accord is not reached by the December 1 deadline, owners could initiate a lockout, freezing player transactions and potentially jeopardizing spring training and the regular season schedule.
Key issues expected to dominate talks include the competitive balance tax thresholds, revenue sharing, service-time manipulation, and potential rule changes. Both sides have expressed public optimism about reaching a deal, but the compressed timeline adds urgency to negotiations that typically extend deep into the offseason.
