Major League Baseball has proposed a significant restructuring of its season format, including a return to a 154-game regular season and a best-of-seven Division Series starting in 2029. The proposal, presented during collective bargaining on Thursday, also introduces a pick your opponent
system for playoff seeds, contingent on the players agreeing to a salary cap.
MLB Proposes 154-Game Season by 2029
Major League Baseball’s latest proposal seeks to reduce the current 162-game schedule by eight games, aiming for a 154-game season beginning in 2029. This shift would mark a return to a format not utilized by the league since the early 1960s, when the American and National Leagues moved to the current 162-game standard.
According to league spokesman Glen Caplin, the change is intended to improve player health and create new opportunities for national broadcasts. Returning to a 154-game schedule would allow us to introduce a weekly off day, which is good for player health, while also creating a new national broadcast window to showcase our most exciting teams and players,
Caplin said in a statement. The league noted that under the new plan, most regular-season Mondays would serve as universal off days, similar to schedules in the U.S. minor leagues.
Management submitted the recent collective bargaining proposal to the Major League Baseball Players Association during a bargaining session. Cutting regular-season games would reduce the opportunity for players to set season and career records. In the American League, the shift to a 162-game schedule occurred in 1961 upon expansion to 10 teams, with the National League following suit the next year. Under the new proposal, the regular season would be played over 180 days in most years rather than the existing 187 days.
Best-of-Seven Division Series and Postseason Adjustments
Alongside the reduction in regular-season games, MLB proposed expanding the Division Series from its current best-of-five format to a best-of-seven series, also slated to begin in 2029. This extension would add up to eight potential games to the postseason calendar, which the league suggests would allow for more prime-time matchups and additional rest days for starting pitchers.
The league aims to shift away from scheduling early-round playoff games during weekday afternoons, a change prompted by difficulties some clubs have faced in filling stadiums during those time slots. By stretching the Division Series over 11 days rather than the current nine, the league intends to create a more consistent rhythm for the postseason, including scheduled travel and rest days before critical series games.
Division Series have operated as best-of-five contests since their inception for annual use in 1995. The proposed postseason format would feature up to nine additional days off, extending the postseason to a maximum of 42 days to give top starting pitchers the potential to appear more often. The Wild Card Series would remain a best-of-three format held at the ballpark of the higher-seeded team, but with an extra day off added between Games 1 and 2 alongside staggered series starts.
Opponent Selection Strategy for 2027
In a separate timeline, the league proposed the introduction of a pick your opponent
system for the postseason, which could be implemented as early as 2027. This format would grant higher-seeded teams the power to choose their challengers in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
- Wild Card Series: The No. 3 seed would select whether to host the No. 5 or No. 6 seed.
- Division Series: The No. 1 seed would select which Wild Card Series winner they wish to face, with the No. 2 seed then facing the remaining team.
Caplin argued that this change would drive engagement, stating that allowing the top seeds to select their opponents in the first two rounds would create compelling storylines, intensify existing rivalries and create new ones.
The league previously floated a similar concept during 2022 labor negotiations as part of a 14-team playoff plan that was ultimately rejected by the players.
MLBPA Rejects Salary Cap Tied to Schedule Changes
The Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) signaled immediate skepticism regarding the proposal, noting that the league has tethered these scheduling changes to the adoption of a salary cap and floor system—a structure the union has historically rejected. With the current collective bargaining agreement set to expire on December 1, tensions between the parties remain high.
“Unfortunately, the league once again made clear that all of its proposals are contingent on players’ agreement to a salary cap, a system that guts player rights and compensation, as well as its other anti-player proposals,”
MLBPA, in an official statement
While the union confirmed it is reviewing the scheduling materials, it emphasized that the salary cap requirement remains the primary obstacle at the bargaining table. The league has reportedly instructed owners and executives to prepare for a potential lockout if an agreement is not reached by the December deadline.
The union also noted in its statement that players would weigh in on the proposals and respond at the bargaining table. Major League Baseball additionally proposed limits on contract values and length alongside the salary cap system.
