TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tony Clark is resigning as head of the Major League Baseball Players Association, a person familiar with 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 comes during an investigation by the U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, New York, into One Team Partners, a licensing company founded by the union and the NFL Players Association.
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 union on Monday canceled Tuesday’s start of the staff’s annual tour of the 30 spring training camps.
Clark, 53, is a former All-Star first baseman who became the first player to head the Union.
He last played in 2008 and was a member of the union staff when Michael Weiner was diagnosed with brain tumor.
He took over as union head when Weiner died in late 2013 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.
