NEW YORK – Major League Baseball and the players' association have agreed to increase pensions for older retired players, according to a person familiar with the deal.
The person told The Associated Press the increases involve players from before 1980 who had less than four years of major league service. The person spoke Tuesday on condition of anonymity because the details have not been announced.
Management and the union called a Thursday news conference to announce an agreement regarding former players but did not go into details.
Current players fully vest in the pension plan with 10 years of major league service. Most fully vested players receive $195,000 annually, the maximum allowed under IRS rules, starting at age 62.
Some pre-1980 players have said they should be allowed to share in the gains made by those who came after them. Baseball's average salary has risen from $19,000 in 1967 to $143,000 in 1980 to $3 million last year.
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