Why MLB trade deadline will be a later date in 2026 season

Hayden Victoria

Why MLB trade deadline will be a later date in 2026 season image

Major League Baseball announced on Tuesday that the 2026 trade deadline will be slightly different from previous years, providing teams with a few additional days to make moves during the summer before focusing on playoff pushes. 

The MLB is stirring social media discussions.

On Monday, Aug. 3, at 6 p.m. EDT, Major League Baseball announced its decision regarding the trade deadline. The move was permitted under the flexibility provisions of the 2022–26 Collective Bargaining Agreement, which allowed the league to extend the deadline from July 28 to Aug. 3.

In recent years, MLB has used this flexibility to avoid setting deadlines on weekends. The shifting dates have sparked discussion on social media, particularly given the varying deadlines from season to season.

  • 2025: July 31
  • 2024: July 30
  • 2023: August 1
  • 2022: August 2
  • 2021: July 30

Last season, the MLB postseason started on September 30 with wild-card games and continued until November 2.

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