reserve clause

American  

noun

Sports.

1. the clause in the contract of a professional player in some sports that binds the player to a team for a season beyond the expiration of the contract in the event a new contract has not been made meanwhile or the player has not been sent to another team.

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Etymology

Origin of reserve clause

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

The 1975 case involved Dodgers pitcher Andy Messersmith and prompted arbitrator Peter Seitz to strike down the reserve clause, the restrictive contract language that had kept players under perpetual team control for nearly 100 years.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 25, 2024

Moss pointed to Hunter’s Yankees contract as proof that in an open market players would make far more than they did with the reserve clause in effect.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 25, 2024

He also oversaw the undermining of the reserve clause, which allowed teams to control players in perpetuity — a process that wasn’t always linear.

From Washington Post • Sep. 8, 2021

In 1975, an arbitrator struck down the reserve clause in the cases of pitchers Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally.

From New York Times • Aug. 18, 2021

The reserve clause in contracts was the direct cause of that struggle.

From The Scrap Book, Volume 1, No. 5 July 1906 by Various