NEW YORK -- Silvia Alvarez was appointed acting communications director of the Major League Baseball Players Association on Tuesday.

Alvarez takes over from communications director Chris Dahl, who shifts to senior adviser for communications and intends to retire on Jan. 1.

Alvarez joined the union in 2019 after working in the campaign and government offices of Senator Cory A. Booker and New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg. She was senior vice president and director of corporate communications for First Horizon National Corp. and director of multicultural and charitable communications for Major League Baseball.

Dahl joined the MLBPA in June 1997 to oversee the launch of its first website and became director of communication in June 2019, 11 months after Greg Bouris resigned. A former sportswriter for The Associated Press, he spent two years as secretary-treasurer of the Wire Service Guild, representing AP and United Press International employees. He worked for Pinnacle Brands in baseball and football trading card marketing from 1991 to '96.