Designated for assignment (DFA) is a contractual term used in Major League Baseball (MLB). A player who is designated for assignment is immediately removed from the team's 40-man roster, after which the team must within seven days, return the player to the 40-man roster, place the player on waivers, trade the player, release the player, or outright the player from the 40-man roster into Minor League Baseball. Governance MLB player transactions are governed by The Official Professional Baseball Rules Book. Rule 2(k), titled "Designated Players", along with Rule 10(g), titled "Player Limit", govern the transaction known as "designated for assignment". It is not specifically named as such, although within Rule 10(b), titled "The Procedures for Obtaining Waivers", the term "designate for assignment" is used. Media use of the phrase dates to at least 1976. Contractual moves Place the player on waivers Typically, a player is placed on waivers after being designated for assignment for the purpose of outrighting him to one of the club's minor league teams. A player who is outrighted to the minors is removed from the 40-man roster but still paid according to the terms of his guaranteed contract. A player can be outrighted only once in his career without his consent. But a player must "clear waivers" (that is, have no other team place a waiver claim on him) to be sent to a minor league team. Also, if the player has five or more full years of major league service, he must consent to be assigned to the minors. If the player withholds consent, the team must either release him or keep him on the major league roster. In either case, the player must continue to be paid under the terms of his contract. Trade the player Once a player is designated for assignment, he may be traded. Some teams have been known to designate players for assignment to increase interest in the player, especially among teams that are not at the top of the waiver list (the order of which is determined by record). For example, in May 2006, Texas Rangers reliever Brian Shouse was designated for assignment and then traded to the Milwaukee Brewers four days later. The Brewers could have waited until Shouse was placed on waivers so as not to have had to give up a player in a trade, but according to the waiver rules, they would have risked losing