Kurkjian: What did we learn from the 1994 MLB strike? Five lessons
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- The 1994 MLB strike began Aug. 12 and forced the cancellation of the World Series on Sept. 14 — and Kurkjian warns that if owners' salary cap demand isn't met when the current CBA expires Dec. 1, 2027 games could be canceled too.
- Spring 1995 replacement players quickly became a public relations disaster — Tigers manager Sparky Anderson boycotted the games entirely, Yankees manager Buck Showalter called it 'the worst time of my career,' and teams scrambled to sign International and Mexican League players to fill rosters.
- The 1994 Montreal Expos were 74-40 at the time of the strike — the best record in baseball — and manager Felipe Alou believes the franchise would still be playing in Montreal with a new stadium if the season had been completed.
- Tony Gwynn was hitting .394 when the strike began, never getting a chance to become the first player to hit .400 since Ted Williams in 1941 — and 57 players never appeared in another MLB game after August 1994, with 19 playing their final game the day the strike started.
- Former MLBPA general counsel Gene Orza said the 1994 players showed 'unheard-of solidarity' led by stars like Cal Ripken, Orel Hershiser and Tom Glavine, but Kurkjian notes today's players make far more money and lack the same closeness to new executive director Bruce Meyer.
- Minor leaguers were left unprotected by the union — F.P. Santangelo was the only one of 200 players in the Expos' camp to refuse replacement games, and the Yankees actively told prospects like Shane Spencer to leave camp 'or you'll be branded.'
Why it matters: The 1994 strike's wreckage is about to be tested in real time: with the CBA expiring Dec. 1 and owners pushing for a salary cap, baseball faces the prospect of a second canceled season in 32 years — one that could derail Aaron Judge's chase of 600 home runs, the Rays' bid for a new stadium, and the careers of any fringe player whose final at-bat comes in August 2027.
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