MLB Announces New Collective Bargaining Agreement

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association officially announced that they reached a new five-year collective bargaining agreement at a news conference today, according to MLB.com.

"I am thrilled for the fans that the clubs and the players of Major League Baseball, together, have the opportunity to further build on our game's unprecedented popularity," Commissioner Bud Selig said. "Labor peace has proven essential to the best interests of baseball and its millions of fans, who have attended our ballparks in historic numbers over the last eight years. During this remarkable era, we have seen outstanding competitive balance, record business performance and a seamless transition to the new modes in which fans want to embrace our sport. I truly believe the best is yet to come for the game we love."

The agreement, which will extend through 2016, will mark 21 consecutive years of labor peace between the owners and the players. Major changes in the new collective bargaining agreement will include a raised minimum salary for players, human growth hormone testing, a new luxury tax designed to eliminate high spending on the draft, and changes to certain types of draft-pick compensation for free-agent signings.