Dick Moss, the lawyer who won free agency for baseball players, dies at age 93
Dick Moss, the lawyer who won the arbitration case that created free agency for baseball players, has died
NEW YORK — Dick Moss, the lawyer who won the arbitration case that created free agency for baseball players and revolutionized pay for professional athletes, has died. He was 93.
Moss died Saturday at an assisted-living residence in Santa Monica, California, the Major League Baseball Players Association said Sunday. He had been in poor health for several years.
Hired by union executive director Marvin Miller as general counsel in 1967, Moss argued the 1975 case involving pitchers Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally that led to arbitrator Peter Seitz striking down the reserve clause. That provision for a unilateral one-year renewal had been included in every contract since 1878 and had enabled teams to control players by maintaining those agreements could be extended perpetually.
Seitz decided on Dec. 23, 1975, the clause meant only a single one-year renewal. The decision impacted all sports across North America and led to collectively bargained free agency in baseball.
“A titan of the industry. He impacted the industry at that time like few others,” said David Cone, a pitcher who was a member of the union leadership and a Moss client. “A bit eccentric, but very fun loving, just a gregarious personality, great guy to be around. Life of the party, a great guy to have a drink with."
At the time of Seitz's decision, the average Major League Baseball salary was just under $45,000. It rose to $76,000 in 1977 and by 2023 was $4.5 million, a 1,000-fold increase.
MLB's revenues increased at a less steep rate, from $163 million in 1975 to more than $11 billion in 2023, a 70-fold rise.
“The difference between winning and losing
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