The Chicago Cubs are one of 30 Major League Baseball teams wondering what will happen to the game after this season, as the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) is up in December.
More News: Despite the Chicago Cubs spending, two OFs have not seen the bag
Executive director of the MLBPA, Tony Clark, resigned amid scandal and an FBI investigation on Tuesday, leaving the MLBPA’s second in command, Bruce Meyer, to fill in for Clark until a successor is elected. Meyer, who met with the Cubs on Wednesday as a part of their tour around the league, all but guaranteed a work stoppage at the end of the 2026 season.
“A lockout is all but guaranteed at the end of the agreement. The league has pretty much said that. Their strategy in bargaining has always been to put as much pressure on players as they can to try and create divisions and cracks among our membership. It’s never worked. I don’t think it ever will work.”
More from MLBPA’s Bruce Meyer who met with Cubs players this afternoon: “A lockout is all but guaranteed at the end of the agreement. The league has pretty much said that. Their strategy in bargaining has always been to put as much pressure on players as they can to try and…
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) February 18, 2026
A work stoppage wouldn’t just be bad for the Chicago Cubs, but all of Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is in its best state it has ever been in. Game 7 of the World Series alone had 51.0 million viewers worldwide, with the whole series averaging 34.0 million, up 19% from 2024.
Player salaries are also on the rise, with Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal making history with his arbitration case, being awarded a salary of $32 million for 2026. Skubal’s victory in arbitration sets a precedent for pitchers moving forward, as the standard for a back-to-back Cy Young Award winner is now $32 million.
The big issue (mainly for owners) is the “big teams” (mainly the Los Angeles Dodgers) outspending smaller market teams by using deferrals. The Cubs are one of those big-market teams that flexed their financial muscle this winter (and used deferrals), spending big to sign third baseman Alex Bregman (five years, $175 million).
Commissioner Rob Manfred and the owners’ solution to these “problems” is a salary cap, which the players are strongly against. With both sides digging their heels in, a work stoppage seems guaranteed.
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