Tony Clark to resign as MLB players' union head as possible cap fight looms

TAMPA, Fla. — Tony Clark intends to resign as head of the Major League Baseball Players Association, a person familiar with the union's deliberations said Tuesday.

The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because his decision, first reported by ESPN, had not been announced. The person said an announcement was likely later Tuesday.

Clark's decision took place during an investigation by the U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, New York, into One Team Partners, a licensing company founded by the union, the NFL Players Association and RedBird Capital Partners in 2019.

Union Shakeup — Major League Baseball Players Association Executive Director Tony Clark answers a question during a news conference in New York on March 11, 2022.
Richard Drew, Associated Press

"A lot of people have known that the investigation has been going on," said the New York Mets' Marcus Semien, a member of the union's eight-man executive subcommittee. "I think that this happening during the investigation is not like, as a subcommittee, is not like overly surprising, but it still hurts and it's still something I'm processing."

Deputy executive director Bruce Meyer is set to be the primary negotiator in the upcoming labor talks, as he was in 2021-22. After Clark and Rick Shapiro led the 2016 negotiations, Meyer was hired in August 2018 as senior director of collective bargaining and legal and was promoted to his current role in July 2022.

Semien believes Clark is leaving to deal with the probe.

"I think so," he said, "because up to this point, before any investigations, I've had the ultimate confidence in Tony Clark to lead this player group. I've had the ultimate confidence in Bruce Meyer to be the lead negotiator for this player group."

The decision was made ahead of an expected start of collective bargaining in April for an agreement to replace the five-year labor contract that expires Dec. 1. Management appears on track to propose a salary cap, which possibly could lead to a work stoppage that causes regular-season games to be canceled for the first time since 1995.

Adam L. Braverman, a former U.S. associate deputy attorney general and U.S. attorney in Los Angeles, was hired by the union's executive subcommittee as outside counsel, two people familiar with the group's action told the AP. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the union hadn't announced that.

The union on Monday canceled Tuesday's scheduled start of the staff's annual tour of the 30 spring training camps, which was to have begun with the Cleveland Guardians in the morning and the Chicago White Sox in the afternoon.

Clark, 53, is a former All-Star first baseman who became the first player to head the union.

He played from 1995-2009, becoming a union leader shortly after going to his first executive board meeting in 1999.

Clark was hired as the union's director of player relations in 2010 and was promoted to deputy executive director in July 2013, when union head Michael Weiner's health declined because of a brain tumor. Weiner died that November and Clark was elevated to executive director, following Marvin Miller, Kenneth Moffett, Donald Fehr and Wiener as union head.

Clark led players through negotiations that led to an agreement in December 2016, about 3 1/2 hours before the prior deal was set to expire, and another in March 2022 after a 99-day lockout.

Meyer, 64, spent 30 years at Weil, Gotshal & Manges before joining the NHL Players Association in 2016 as senior director of collective bargaining, policy and legal.

Three members of the subcommittee, Jack Flaherty, Lucas Giolito and Ian Happ, were among the players who in March 2024 advocated for the ouster of Meyer in an effort led by former union lawyer Harry Marino. Clark backed Meyer, the effort failed and those three players were dropped off the subcommittee that December.

The subcommittee voted 8-0 against approving the 2022 labor contract and Meyer had advocated pushing management for a deal more favorable to the union. Team player representatives, the overall group supervising negotiations, voted 26-4 in favor, leaving the overall ballot at 26-12 for ratification.

In addition to Semien, the current subcommittee includes Chris Bassitt, Jake Cronenworth, Pete Fairbanks, Cedric Mullins, Paul Skenes, Tarik Skubal and Brent Suter.

OneTeam says since its formation that it added, among others, the players' associations of the WNBA, MLS, NWSL and the U.S. women's soccer national team. RedBird sold its stake in 2019 to HPS Investment Partners, Atlantic Park Strategic Capital Fund and Morgan Stanley Tactical Value.