Deal peels back All-Star Game stakes

The All-Star Game will no longer determine home-field advantage in the World Series. Instead, the team with the better regular-season record will receive the extra home game.

The change was included in the new collective bargaining agreement, said a person briefed on the agreement who was granted anonymity because the deal had not been ratified.

The All-Star Game began determining home-field advantage in 2003. Before that, the advantage had alternated between the National and American League teams.

The change in 2003 had been inspired in part by a debacle the previous year, when the All-Star Game was halted as a 7-7 tie after 11 innings because teams were running out of players. It was thought that adding some significance to the game would increase interest. But the rule was always divisive among baseball fans.

Major League Baseball and the players' association said they will make specific terms of the labor agreement available when a draft is complete.

Many details of the tentative agreement began leaking out Wednesday and Thursday.

The minimum time for a stint on the disabled list will be reduced from 15 days to 10.

The luxury tax threshold rises from $189 million to $195 million next year, $197 million in 2018, $206 million in 2019, $209 million in 2020 and $210 million in 2021.

Tax rates increase from 17.5 percent to 20 percent for first offenders, remain at 30 percent for second offenders and rise from 40 percent to 50 percent for third offenders. There is a new surtax of 12 percent for teams $20 million to $40 million above the threshold, 42.5 percent for first offenders more than $40 million above the threshold and 45 percent for subsequent offenders more than $40 million above. And special transition rates will be used for 2017.

Key changes involve the qualifying offers clubs can make to their former players after they become free agents -- the figure was $17.2 million this year. If a player turns down the offer and signs elsewhere, his new team forfeits an amateur draft pick, which usually had been in the first round under the old deal.

Under the new rules, a player can receive a qualifying offer only once in his career and will have 10 days to consider it instead of seven. A club signing a player who declined a qualifying offer would lose its third-highest amateur draft pick if it is a revenue-sharing receiver, its second- and fifth-highest picks (plus a loss of $1 million in its international draft pool) if it pays luxury tax for the just-ended season, and its second-highest pick (plus $500,000 in the international draft pool) if it is any other team.

A club losing a free agent who passed up a qualifying offer would receive an extra selection after the first round of the next draft if the player signed a contract for $50 million or more and after competitive balance round B if under $50 million.

Among other details:

• For a team $40 million or more in excess of the luxury tax threshold, its highest selection in the next amateur draft will drop 10 places starting in 2018.

• While management failed to obtain an international draft of amateurs residing outside the U.S., Puerto Rico and Canada, it did get a hard cap on each team's annual bonus pool for those players starting at $4.75 million for the signing period that begins next July 2. The pool rises to $5.25 million for teams with competitive balance round A draft picks and $5.75 million for clubs with round B selections.

• There is no change to limits on active rosters, which remain at 25 for most of the season and 40 from Sept. 1 on.

• Smokeless tobacco will be banned for all new players, those who currently do not have at least one day of major league service.

• The regular season will expand from 183 days to 187 starting in 2018, creating four more scheduled off days. There are additional limitations on the start times of night games on getaway days.

• The minimum salary rises from $507,500 to $535,000 next year, $545,000 in 2018 and $555,000 in 2019, with cost-of-living increases the following two years; the minor league minimum for a player appearing on the 40-man roster for at least the second time goes up from $82,700 to $86,500 next year, $88,000 in 2018 and $89,500 in 2019, followed by cost-of-living raises.

• The drop-off in slot values in the first round of the amateur draft will be lessened.

• Cubans under 25 will be considered amateurs, up from 23.

• Each team must hire a chef for its players.

• Every player must be provided two bus seats during spring training bus trips.

• As part of the drug agreement, there will be increased testing, players will not be credited with major league service time during suspensions, and biomarker testing for human growth hormone will begin next year.

Negotiators met through most of Tuesday night in an effort to increase momentum in the talks, which began during spring training. Talks took place at a hotel outside Dallas where the players' association held its annual executive board meeting.

Sports on 12/02/2016

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