Tony Clark plans to resign as executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Don Van Natta Jr.
Clark’s resignation comes in the wake of the Eastern District of New York’s investigation into alleged financial improprieties at the union.
The move 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 1985.
The MLBPA was scheduled to hold its first meeting with players this spring at the Cleveland Guardians‘ camp Tuesday. That meeting was abruptly canceled, however, and leaves the union without its top leader in a bargaining year.
Clark, 53, joined the MLBPA in 2010 after a 15-year career as a player in the majors. He took over as the union’s executive director in 2013 following the death of predecessor Michael Weiner and led players through negotiations that led to agreements in 2016 and 2022, the latter after a 99-day lockout.
Bruce Meyer, who was the lead negotiator under Clark in 2021-22, was promoted to deputy executive director in the summer of 2022 and is slated to again head negotiation.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
