PORT ST. LUCIE — Marcus Semien found out that Tony Clark plans to resign from his post as the executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association the same way the rest of the world found out: A news alert on his phone.
Tuesday morning’s news came without warning to members of the MLBPA, leaving them shocked.
“Very sad to see because Tony has meant a lot to me since I was a rookie,” said the Mets second baseman, a member of the MLBPA’s executive subcommittee. “He helped me [get] involved in 2020, a time where we couldn’t play baseball. Just learning everything about the ins and outs of what happens between the league and players, so to see this news this morning, I’m still processing.”
Semien thinks Clark’s exit was due to the federal investigation into financial improprieties.
“I think that there has been an investigation going on in terms of information regarding the investigation,” Semien said. “It’s still going on, but you know, we still need to discuss with players like, why are you going? You definitely don’t want things to be a distraction going into December. So that’s all I can really say about maybe why this is happening now.”
The collective bargaining agreement is set to expire Dec. 1. Owners are expected to lock players out for the second time since 2021, with owners pushing hard for a salary cap, and the union pushing back.
Mets owner and CEO Steve Cohen is not among those pushing for a salary cap, at least not yet. This news comes one day after Cohen said he has not made up his mind about a cap, but is listening to all sides.
Semien, who joined the Mets in December after being traded for Brandon Nimmo, was in a team meeting when news broke. He returned to the clubhouse at the Mers’ Clover Park complex to find a news alert on his phone, and communication from the MLBPA. The next step will be talking with the subcommittee, and player representatives from each team. Given the timing of the news, Semien said the group won’t be able to meet until Tuesday afternoon at the earliest, sometime after spring training workouts.
Semien said the subcommittee members have received relevant information about the investigation as it’s made available, and they understand the department of justice has other cases and works on its own timeline.
The union last changed leadership in 2013 when executive director Michael Weiner passed away from a brain tumor. He was succeeded by Clark, his deputy. Clark was the first former player to lead the union.
“I don’t know how long that takes. This is all new,” Semien said. “I don’t think something like this has ever happened. I was not a player rep when Michael Weiner got sick, but that was the only time it was like we kind of needed to replace [a director], or have someone internal or something. So these are things that we’ll try and iron out as soon as possible because, like I said, it’s a big year for our player group.”
Semien said that while much is still unknown, it’s better for Clark to resign now, before the season even begins, than to do so closer to December. The MLBPA is considered the strongest union in sports, and they’ll now have time to create a game plan for negotiations with owners and the league this winter. As far as Semien knows, Bruce Meyer, the MLBPA’s executive deputy director, is still expected to be the lead negotiator for the group in CBA talks.
“Up to this point, or any investigations, I’ve had the ultimate confidence in this player group, I’ve had the ultimate confidence in Bruce Meyer to be the lead negotiator for this player group,” Semien said. “That team continuity between those two going through the COVID lockout — that’s what I call it — to the actual lockout that we had in ’21, that was a strong team. So we’ll have to make some adjustments along the way, but I’m still processing what happened and thinking about what’s next.”
What’s next is the question all of baseball is asking.
