MLB Proposes 154-Game Season for 2029 as Top Seeds Gain Opponent Choice

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Oct 8

A 154-game schedule starting in 2029 anchors MLB owners’ latest labor proposal, trimming eight games from the current season and adding a weekly off-day for every team.
MLB said the shorter calendar would improve player health and open a new national TV window, while also reducing weekday afternoon playoff games.
Owners also proposed expanding the Division Series from best-of-five to best-of-seven and letting the highest seed in the Wild Card and Division Series choose its opponent.
That seed-choice idea follows criticism of the current bracket, which left the Yankees and Red Sox—owners of the AL’s second- and third-best records—out of the Championship Series path advantages.
The package still includes a salary cap that players call non-negotiable, with owners expected to lock out players on Dec. 1 when the current CBA expires.