Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Tony Clark resigned Tuesday after an internal investigation revealed an inappropriate relationship with his sister-in-law, who the union hired in 2023, sources told ESPN.
During the union’s internal probe — which came in the wake of a wide-ranging and still-open federal investigation into the MLBPA’s finances and other alleged improprieties, including nepotism — the relationship between Clark and the woman came to light, sources said, and prompted him to step down after more than a dozen years as the union’s leader.
Following the revelation by ESPN of the investigation by the Eastern District of New York in late May, the MLBPA hired former assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Braverman to serve as outside counsel and inform the eight-man executive subcommittee of potential legal liabilities to the union. In the course of the inquiry, the relationship surfaced and ultimately led to Clark’s resignation.
The EDNY’s investigation concerns questions about the use of funds related to profits from OneTeam Partners, a multibillion-dollar group-licensing company part-owned by the union, and Players Way, a youth baseball initiative that spent millions of dollars but offered only a handful of events, sources familiar with the investigation said.
Prosecutors are also investigating allegations of obstruction, according to sources briefed on the investigation who spoke with ESPN on the condition of anonymity. A former NFLPA lawyer alleged Clark and Lloyd Howell, the former NFLPA executive director who later resigned, mounted “a pressure campaign to shut down a thorough review” of a proposed bonus plan that would have paid millions to OneTeam executive board members. The allegation was made by Heather McPhee, a top veteran NFLPA lawyer who was fired after filing a wrongful termination lawsuit against the union. McPhee is expected to testify before a federal grand jury in Brooklyn.
Player leaders were scheduled to meet Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. ET to discuss Clark’s departure as well as the potential candidates to replace him.
The federal investigation was triggered by a whistleblower complaint filed against Clark with the National Labor Relations Board in November 2024 that alleged self-dealing, misuse of resources, abuse of power and nepotism. The MLBPA eventually hired Braverman to advise players on the status of the government’s case, and during the union’s board meeting in December, he briefed subcommittee about potential legal liabilities Clark posed, sources said.
The EDNY was aware of the inappropriate relationship before ESPN first reported it Tuesday, sources said.
Neither Braverman nor Clark’s attorney, Daniel Collins, returned messages left Tuesday by ESPN.
Clark’s resignation, which was first reported by The Athletic, cast a pall over a negotiation already expected to be the most contentious in a generation, with owners’ expected push for a salary cap likely to prompt a lockout upon the current CBA’s Dec. 1 expiration.
The process for naming Clark’s replacement is unclear, and the union’s constitution does not outline a succession plan.
Bruce Meyer, the union’s deputy executive director, has been named by several player leaders as the most obvious candidate to take over, according to sources.
Brent Suter, a veteran relief pitcher and a subcommittee member, told reporters that the union is “going to have an interim [executive director] and keep everything as stable as we can this year.”
Clark, 53, was the first player to lead the MLBPA, voted in as executive director in 2013 after the death of predecessor Michael Weiner. Multiple times since then, players had considered changes in leadership at the union — including an attempted spring 2023 ouster of Meyer that Clark helped stop — but the investigation by the EDNY led to questions that ultimately factored in Clark’s resignation.
The union, which was scheduled to start its spring training tour of all 30 clubhouses Tuesday, abruptly canceled its 8 a.m. ET meeting with the Cleveland Guardians in Goodyear, Arizona.
“This happening during the investigation is not overly surprising,” said New York Mets second baseman Marcus Semien, also a subcommittee member. “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 joined the MLBPA following a 15-year player career and was seen as a potential successor to Weiner, who died in 2013 after battling brain cancer. Clark’s ascent was hailed by players, though following a CBA he negotiated in 2017 that was seen as an overwhelming win for the league, the union hired Meyer, a longtime labor lawyer who had worked with the NHL, NFL and NBA, as chief negotiator.
Chicago Cubs pitcher Jameson Taillon, a former player rep, said Tuesday that he was “surprised” by Clark’s resignation, adding that he didn’t think “any of us saw it coming.”
“The strength of the union isn’t one person,” Taillon said. “It’s about the players. It’s always been about that. I’m confident we’ll find someone good to lead us.”
Meyer shepherded the union’s return-to-play negotiations through the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic and was in charge at the bargaining table when the league locked out the players in 2021. Despite the subcommittee voting unanimously in March 2022 to reject the league’s final offer that would have led to games being missed, the rank-and-file players voted 26-4 in favor of the deal.
“With this group of players, we’ve been through a lot,” said Cubs outfielder Ian Happ, also a former player rep. “We’ve seen a ton. We’ve been through a lockout, we’ve been through 2020. That kept the players very informed and very aware. Having gone through those experiences will help in this one.”
The investigation into the MLBPA roiled the union, even as Clark denied wrongdoing and continued to do so months after government lawyers started asking questions about his tenure.
OneTeam Partners, an idea hatched by Clark and former NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith and launched in 2019, was valued at nearly $2 billion when one of the initial partners in the venture, RedBird Capital, sold its 40% stake in the business to three investors in 2022. As a group-licensing firm, OneTeam sought to strike media deals and monetize athletes’ name, image and likeness.
The bonus plan, which would have given so-called “profit units” to board members, was flagged by McPhee, the former NFLPA lawyer who was fired in late December. While the NFLPA launched an investigation following McPhee raising concerns, the MLBPA declined to do the same.
McPhee alleged in her lawsuit in December that Clark urged Howell to “shut down” the investigation asking questions about OneTeam’s executive bonus plan, which Clark would have earned millions of dollars in payments.
Players Way, one of Clark’s pet projects, initially aimed to hold events and showcases for youth baseball players and spent at least $3.9 million despite limited attendance. ESPN reported in October that federal investigators asked questions about the for-profit company, which listed a suite number at a Windermere, Florida, address that was actually a post office box at a UPS Store.
In a statement to ESPN, Clark said the union started Players Way “as an oasis for young athletes and families who too often get exploited in today’s billion-dollar ‘youth sports’ machinery.”
Although union officials insisted the organization would become far more active last October, Players Way, according to its website, currently has no events scheduled. Several sources have told ESPN that Players Way has been shut down, though union officials have declined to confirm that.
ESPN’s Jorge Castillo and Jesse Rogers contributed to this report.
