MLB commissioner Rob Manfred is telling baseball fans not to write off the 2027 season just yet, even as the sport moves toward what could become another contentious labor showdown.
Manfred joined ESPN’s broadcast during Sunday’s Little League Classic between the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers, where the looming expiration of MLB’s collective bargaining agreement was among the subjects he addressed.
The current CBA expires Dec. 1, 2026, and the possibility of a lockout has already generated plenty of concern. Manfred, however, said negotiations between MLB and the players are taking place regularly and maintained that the league intends to have baseball on the schedule next year.
Manfred Says MLB Is Planning to Play in 2027
“We’re meeting regularly, which is good,” Manfred said, according to reports. “Every week we’ve had days where we’ve met with the players. It’s early, but we’ve got a lot of work to do, and we’re at it.”
Manfred then made the league’s stated objective clear. “Look, our goal is to make a deal. We want to make a deal; we want to play baseball next year. We’re planning on playing baseball next year.”
Those words come against a much more contentious backdrop.
In February, it was reported that owners were prepared to “burn the f—ing house down” and potentially jeopardize the entire 2027 season to pursue a hard salary cap resembling the system used by the NHL.
Then, in May, Evan Drellich of The Athletic reported that MLB had proposed a $245.3 million salary cap, a $171.2 million salary floor and an even 50-50 split of revenues.
That sets up an obvious point of conflict. The players’ union has historically resisted a salary cap, and nothing so far indicates that its longstanding position is about to change. Manfred’s comments may offer reassurance that negotiations are active, but the two sides still have major issues to resolve before the current agreement expires.
Salary Cap Fight Could Become the Major Obstacle
A hard salary cap would significantly change MLB’s economic system, making the issue particularly difficult heading into negotiations.
The union has spent years opposing such a structure, while the league’s reported proposal would pair a $245.3 million ceiling with a $171.2 million floor. Add the proposed 50-50 revenue split, and MLB and its players have plenty to negotiate before Dec. 1 arrives.
For now, Manfred is emphasizing the fact that the sides are talking regularly rather than predicting where those negotiations will ultimately lead.
While MLB’s labor situation remains unsettled, the league is already making plans for one of its signature events in 2027.
Manfred announced Sunday that the Little League Classic will return to Williamsport, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, Aug. 19, with the Chicago Cubs facing the Toronto Blue Jays.
Little League Classic Already Set for 2027
“Look, I love this event,” Manfred said. “We feel comfortable coming back every year because there’s something fresh every year. The kids, and the interaction between our players and the kids — just really fantastic.”
The event requires major-league players to make another trip during an already demanding 162-game season, and the facilities in Williamsport cannot duplicate those of a traditional MLB stadium. According to Manfred, however, players have embraced the unusual setting rather than complained about it.
“This is another plane flight,” Manfred said. “The facilities, obviously, we do the very best we can, but it’s not the same as being in a major-league ballpark, and you do not hear one complaint from the players.”
Instead, Manfred said players repeatedly describe the experience positively, particularly because of their interactions with Little League players.
The Little League Classic debuted in August 2017 and has been played every year since with one exception: the 2020 edition was not held during the COVID-19 pandemic.
MLB’s scheduling of the Cubs and Blue Jays for Williamsport in August 2027 fits Manfred’s public message. The league is building its calendar as though the season will proceed normally.
Whether MLB and its players can reach the labor agreement needed to make that calendar a reality remains the far more difficult question.
