Tony Clark is stepping down as executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association amid a federal investigation into his conduct, according to multiple news outlets.
The departure was announced Tuesday, coinciding with what should have been Clark’s traditional visits to spring training facilities across the country.
Clark, age 53, has led the players’ union since 2013. The former major league player who spent 15 seasons in professional baseball has been under scrutiny by federal prosecutors in New York’s Eastern District since last summer over allegations of improper handling of licensing funds. ESPN’s reporting Tuesday also revealed the investigation uncovered an inappropriate relationship between Clark and his sister-in-law, whom the union employed in 2023.
Federal investigators are examining the MLBPA’s involvement with OneTeam Partners, a multi-billion dollar licensing enterprise the union launched alongside the NFL players association in 2019. They’re also looking into Players Way, a for-profit youth baseball program that consumed at least $3.9 million while hosting minimal events, according to ESPN’s investigation. The youth program has reportedly been discontinued, though union representatives wouldn’t confirm this development.
The union brought in external legal counsel to keep members informed about the federal probe, which started after a whistleblower filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board in November 2024. The complaint accused Clark of conflicts of interest, resource mismanagement, power abuse, and favoritism toward family members.
Neither Adam Braverman, the attorney representing the union, nor Daniel Collins, Clark’s personal counsel, responded to ESPN’s requests for comment Tuesday.
Union leadership was set to convene Tuesday afternoon to address Clark’s departure, ESPN reported.
“This happening during the investigation is not overly surprising,” New York Mets second baseman Marcus Semien, also a subcommittee member, told reporters on Tuesday. “But it still hurts. It’s still something I’m processing and I just want our player group to move forward this year and be able to have a good year of negotiating with leadership that cares about what players want.”
“The timing being February, when we’re looking forward to December when the CBA expires, is better than it happening in November if something came out.”
Clark assumed leadership of the MLBPA in 2013 following the death of his predecessor, Michael Weiner. During his tenure, he negotiated two collective bargaining agreements – one completed on schedule in 2017 and another following the 2021 season that required a 99-day work stoppage before being resolved just before Opening Day.
The current labor agreement concludes after this season, with both sides appearing distant on several major issues. Team owners have pushed for implementing a salary cap similar to other major American professional sports leagues.
The players’ association has firmly rejected this proposal, with Clark strongly opposing any salary cap implementation, arguing it wouldn’t improve competitive balance in the sport.
Questions remain about how quickly the union can select Clark’s replacement and whether the leadership transition will impact ongoing contract discussions, which typically continue throughout the season.
Professional baseball hasn’t lost games to a work stoppage since the 1994 strike that resulted in canceling that year’s World Series.
