26-Man Roster

 What is the 26-Man Roster?

The 26-man roster, otherwise known as the active roster, is the list of players available to play in a game for a Major League Baseball team.

The roster size increased in 2020; before then, it was 25 players, but they increased to 26.

The 26-man roster is not the only MLB relevant roster. Teams also have something called the 40-man roster. This is a longer list of players who are eligible to be on the 26-man roster, but do not necessarily have to be. The 40-man roster also includes players on the shorter injured list and some players in the minor leagues. A player must be on the 40-man roster before they are eligible to be added to the active roster and play in a major league game.

How is the 26-Man Roster used?

The 26-man roster is how teams announce who is eligible to play. It is usually a mix of players under long-term contracts and players in their early careers on minimum deals. 

Players can be added to or taken off of the active roster before a game starts or after it ends. Players may be added from inside the organization, whether being promoted from the minor leagues or activated off the disabled list. They can also be added from outside the organization, through trades, waivers, and free agent signings.

Teams virtually always use all 26 slots on their roster in every game, which means that, in order to add a player to the roster, a corresponding player must be removed. Players can be removed by being sent down to the minors, placed on the injured list, traded, waived, or designated for assignment.

The roster increase also brought a rule change, for the first time limiting the number of pitchers allowed on the roster. In the late 2010s, as managers began to lean more and more on relievers, teams would carry more pitchers, feeling like they did not need as many position player back-ups. In 2020, MLB created a new rule allowing a maximum of 13 pitchers on the active roster.

How to see the 26-Man Roster?

At a baseball game, most programs will list the 26-man roster. You can also usually see it during a broadcast. However, the most reliable way is online. Websites like Baseball Reference track this, as do the teams’ websites.

26-Man Roster Examples

The roster size expanded from 21 players to 25 in 1920, however it wasn’t until the 1940s that teams started using all 25 slots. Before the advent of the modern farm system, a few roster slots were reserved to scout and train young players. Now, the minor leagues serves that purpose.

Occasionally, MLB has granted roster size exceptions. For example, in 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, teams were allowed to have a roster size of 28 players. 

Filed under Uncategorized