With Major League Baseball's collective bargaining agreement set to expire at 11:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 1, the league has begun outlining what a potential lockout could entail for its 30 teams.
Deputy commissioner Dan Halem shared a 34-page memo with owners and high-ranking executives on Oct. 1, detailing what to expect should the stoppage arrive, according to The Athletic's Evan Drellich.
The memo included a plan that would see player images and videos removed from the league website and largely ban contact between team officials and players.
This step was taken during the lockout between the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
“Our commitment has been and remains to exhaust every realistic option to achieve our goal of reaching an agreement with the Players Association…” the memo, which was obtained by The Athletic, said. “… however, clubs need to be prepared for the possibility that an agreement will not be reached by then and the clubs are left with no realistic alternative but to implement a lockout of major league players…”
Team officials were instructed to avoid contact with players on their 40-man rosters "to the greatest extent possible," as "the line between permissible and prohibited conversations is not always clear."
Clubs are allowed to provide off-season workout plans for players before the lockout would begin, but not afterward.
The memo also advised teams and officials on how to handle communications during the potential stoppage and provided pre-approved talking points for ticket sales staff. It also recommended that teams avoid sending holiday cards to players after Dec. 1, provided etiquette for attending players' weddings and it said that MLB won't prevent players from playing winterball or in Japan if there is a lockout.
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