February 17, 2026

Dear Peter:

My February letter to members is normally dedicated to the countdown to Opening Day; I’ll share a bit about the weather starting to change, the days getting longer, touch on pitchers and catchers reporting, and tell all of you that we’ve made it, baseball is back!

All of those things are happening; so if you exclusively get your news from SABR, do not despair. Spring training is under way, Opening Day will be here in a little more than a month, and I am very excited about another season of baseball beginning anew.

But there’s actually something I’m more excited to share with SABR members; a project that ALL members will be able to participate in, debate with one another, and hopefully learn a bit more about the game along the way. Throughout the 2026 season, SABR members will vote on SABR’s All-Time Eras Teams as we celebrate 150 years of baseball and American history since the founding of the National League in 1876.

Right now, a committee of SABR members is working to divide 150+ years of professional baseball history into eras that reflect consistent rules and conditions of the game as well as consistent styles of play. With those eras in place, the committee will begin creating a ballot for each era, providing members with voting options at every position on the diamond, as well as manager and executive.

We will release our All-Time Eras Teams ballots throughout the summer and culminate each member vote with a webinar that includes an American history lecture covering that era of history prior to the unveiling of the team. Professional baseball may not cover the entirety of the United States of America’s 250 years—although it comes close—but we intend to celebrate both this year.

More details will be announced about SABR’s All-Time Eras Teams project in March. I hope I’ve whetted your appetite for the debates, discussion, and celebration to come.

Yours in baseball,

Scott Bush
SABR CEO

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