Players speaking out against MLBPA are being intimidated by peers, lawyer

Players speaking out against the leadership of the Major League Baseball Players Association are being threatened and bullied by other players, according to a leader of the group that’s challenging top officials.

“It has been shocking and disappointing to hear that several major-league and minor-league players are being threatened, bullied, and retaliated against for having come forward with their honest opinions,” said Harry Marino, a former MLBPA lawyer, in a statement Sunday afternoon. “It is important to remember that federal law protects every union member’s right ‘to express any views, arguments, or opinions’ and ‘to meet and assemble freely with other members.’ Players should never apologize for exercising these rights.”

The statement did not specify which individuals are alleged to be intimidating players or what form the alleged actions took. Marino, who has become the public face of the players who want to oust some in union leadership, did not immediately respond to a request for further comment.

In a statement issued a short while later Sunday afternoon, MLBPA executive director Tony Clark referred to the Marino group as “a coordinated and covert effort” that “troubled players.” Clark did not address the allegation of intimidation.

“For decades, the bedrock of the MLBPA has been an engaged membership that does not bend to outside agendas,” Clark said in his statement. “It therefore comes as no surprise that a coordinated and covert effort to challenge this foundation has troubled players at all levels of professional baseball. These concerns are being discussed where they should be, in clubhouses around the league. In due time, they will be resolved consistent with the traditions of this great organization.”

Since this episode began, none of Clark, Marino or deputy director Bruce Meyer have granted a published interview. Meyer sent a lengthy letter to players late Thursday night, while Clark and Marino have issued statements at different junctures.

Marino’s statement Sunday comes six days after a video meeting of some members of the MLBPA’s 72-player executive board turned heated Monday, when some players asked Clark to remove Meyer in place of Marino. At least three members of the MLBPA executive subcommittee, Lucas Giolito, Ian Happ and Jack Flaherty, are leading the push for change among current major leaguers, people briefed on the process said. The trio sits on the MLBPA’s eight-player executive subcommittee.

Marino wrote Sunday that the discontent goes back years.

Bruce Meyer (left) and Tony Clark (right) at a press conference in 2022. (Richard Drew / Associated Press)

“Like many, I cannot believe how quickly this effort has picked up steam and begun to deliver results,” Marino wrote. “Over the past week, there has been more discussion, dialogue, and engagement among MLBPA members regarding the proper functioning of their union than at any time in recent history….