Los Angeles Dodgers Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale End Holdout

By David Hill | Mar 30, 2016

Aug 12, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Detailed view of Los Angeles Dodgers hat and glove in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the third inning at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /

There had been other holdouts before in baseball history, but when the Los Angeles Dodgers Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale held out, it may have changed the future of the game.

Prior to free agency, the reserve clause was one of the most hated parts of a contract for baseball players. In essence, the players were perpetually tied to a team, as that team retained their rights even when the contract ran out. The only option that a player had back to seek a substantial pay raise, or to play for another team of their choosing, then was to hold out.

That was exactly what the Los Angeles Dodgers two aces, Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale, did at the end of the 1965 season. The two aces of the staff sought a considerable pay raise over their 1965 salaries, as they negotiated in tandem, each demanding a three year deal worth a total of $1 Million to be divided between the two. As Koufax had posted a stellar 26-8 record with a 2.04 ERA, a 0.855 WHiP and 382 strikeouts en route to winning a Cy Young award, and Drysdale had a 23-12 record with a 2.70 ERA, a 1.090 WHiP and 210 strikeouts of his own, it is understandable as to why they felt underpaid.

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Obviously, Dodgers GM Bill Bavasi said no to the two pitchers’ demands, as he felt it would set a precedent. Drysdale and Koufax threatened to hold out, and once Spring Training arrived without either star pitcher without either appearing, the Dodgers realized how committed both were. In fact, Koufax and Drysdale were set to appear in a film with Chuck Connors, whose television show, The Rifleman, Drysdale had appeared on years before.

Finally, with days before the regular season, both sides were able to come to an accord. Drysdale and Bavasi met by themselves in the back room of a restaurant named Nicola’s, where Drysdale agreed to sign for $110,000 and Koufax for $125,000. The deal was struck, and forty years ago today, both pitchers ended their holdouts.

This holdout was notable in that it set two things in motion. First, Drysdale and Koufax began the process for collective bargaining in baseball, where players could actually negotiate their salaries instead of taking whatever the teams offered. Second, with this holdout, and what appeared to be a victory for the two pitchers, it gave confidence to other players to stand up for their own rights, as would be seen later by Curt Flood, Andy Messersmith and Dave McNally.

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These two Los Angeles Dodgers legends helped shape the way baseball contracts are negotiated to this day. Who knew that, when they ended their holdout forty years ago, it would have had such a tremendous impact on the future of the game?

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