MLB proposes 154-game season, expanded playoffs; ties all changes to salary cap on October 8

MLB proposed a restructured regular season and playoff format on October 8, anchoring the entire package to player acceptance of a salary cap, a condition the players' union has stated it will not meet.

The ownership proposal centers on reducing the regular season from 162 games to 154 games, per CBS Sports. The change would introduce a standard weekly off-day, creating what MLB spokesman Glen Caplin framed as better player health and a new national broadcast window, per Front Office Sports. Under the proposed schedule, Monday would be an off-day across the league except for one or two games that could air in an exclusive national window, with teams that play Monday off on Thursday instead, according to Awful Announcing.

The playoff component expands the Division Series from best-of-five to best-of-seven, per CBS Sports, adding up to eight more postseason games total. Higher-seeded clubs would be allowed to select their opponents in the Wild Card Series and Division Series, per CBS Sports. Both the 154-game season and best-of-seven Division Series would begin in 2029, while opponent selection would start in 2027, according to CBS Sports.

But MLB linked every proposal to a single condition. According to CBS Sports, all of the league's proposals are contingent on players' agreement to a salary cap. The players' union maintains it will not accept any kind of salary cap system, per CBS Sports.

The timing anchors to labor deadlines. The current collective bargaining agreement expires at 11:59 p.m. ET on December 1, per CBS Sports. It is a near certainty the owners will lock out the players at that time, per CBS Sports. The salary cap, according to CBS Sports, is the single biggest issue between the sides.

The structural logic behind the proposal tilts toward media revenue. MLB's current national TV deal expires after the 2028 season, per CBS Sports. An expanded postseason with more games and higher-seeded teams choosing opponents could generate higher television ratings and richer national media contracts. A shorter regular season trades team revenue from four fewer home games per club for ownership's bet on higher postseason viewership and premium national contracts.

The union's response was swift. According to CBS Sports, the MLBPA stated: "Unfortunately, the league once again made clear that all of its proposals are contingent on players' agreement to a salary cap, a system that guts player rights and compensation, as well as its other anti-player proposals." The union views the scheduling changes as inseparable from the salary cap demand.

Historically, the 154-game schedule is not new. The American League played 154 games from 1920 to 1961, and the National League from 1920 to 1962, before both expanded to 162 games, per CBS Sports. The MLBPA has expressed interest in returning to a 154-game schedule in recent years, citing injury and workload concerns, according to CBS Sports. That alignment on a shorter season has not translated into negotiating momentum; the salary cap remains the structural wall.