Labor peace is reportedly at hand

DETROIT -- Baseball players and owners have reached a tentative agreement on a five-year labor contract, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press on Sunday.

The deal, struck during bargaining in New York on Friday night and Saturday, is subject to the sides putting the agreement in writing, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because the agreement had not been finalized.

In the often bitter history of baseball labor relations, reaching agreement before a contract's expiration has to be considered a milestone. The current deal, set to expire Dec. 19, was agreed to in August 2002, just hours before players were set to strike.

Lawyers were working on drafting language for the new deal Sunday, and hoped to put the finishing touches on it today or Tuesday. Commissioner Bud Selig will then announce it in St. Louis at the World Series.

-- The Associated Press