Union ratifies new baseball CBA By Sports Network

Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig (L) and Major League Baseball Players Association Executive Director Michael Weiner attend a news conference in New York, November 22, 2011. (REUTERS/Mike Segar)

IRVING, TX - The Major League Baseball Players Association has approved the new collective bargaining agreement with owners that was reached last week.

A unanimous vote from the MLBPA's executive board ratified the new deal that will keep labor peace in the sport through the 2016 season.

"The board's decisive action here is a culmination of the consistent involvement of the players during this round of bargaining," said MLBPA executive director Michael Weiner in a statement. "Ratification comes as no surprise, as players have been engaged heavily throughout the process -- constructing proposals, formulating strategy and participating in negotiating sessions."

In addition to the Basic Agreement, the union's board also unanimously approved the Joint Drug Agreement and Benefit Plan Agreement.

The conclusion of a new five-year pact will give the sport uninterrupted labor peace for more than 20 years, something once considered unimaginable after constant battles between the owners and players led to strikes in 1981 and 1994 -- the latter of which eventually forced the cancellation of that year's World Series and delayed the start of the 1995 campaign.