Major league baseball owners reportedly have secretly...

Major league baseball owners reportedly have secretly approved a strike fund of nearly $100 million.

USA Today said that owners, preparing for the worst in negotiations of a new basic labor agreement, also have authorized Barry Rona, executive director of the Player Relations Committee, to obtain a line of credit for millions of dollars above the fund.

According to USA Today, the fund will be used primarily to buy strike insurance, to arrange the line of credit, or both. Baseball’s contract with the Major League Players Assn. will expire Dec. 31, 1989.