Since the beginning of these labor negotiations, a 14-team expanded postseason has been near the top of the list for MLB owners. That was met with some resistance by the players in recent negotiations as they fear that teams will be reluctant to spend money if their spot in the postseason is assured. The union was open to some playoff expansion but settled on a 12-team format in most recent proposals.
That might be changing now as ESPN’s Buster Olney reports that the union may be offering the 14-team postseason as a carrot to restart negotiations and will use it to seek more flexibility on the Competitive Balance Tax.