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Good morning, baseball fans!
Representatives for MLB and the MLBPA met again yesterday for 90 minutes to continue negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement. The fact that they are starting to meet more frequently shows that there might be a renewed sense of urgency, with February underway and spring training right around the corner.
It seems to me like the one thing owners care about is money, specifically making more and keeping more of it for themselves. And you don’t make money if there aren’t people in seats with $20 beers in their hand and $150 jerseys on their backs. In order for that to happen, they’re finding that they actually need baseball players to play baseball games. What a concept!
Still, there doesn’t appear to be much progress, with the two sides engaging in reportedly “heated” negotiations, yet landing miles apart on today’s points of contention, which were service-time manipulation and the pre-arbitration bonus pool. The players appear to be willing to make concessions, but it seems as though the owners are unwilling to do the same.
It sure isn’t looking good for spring training starting on time, so hold off on those Arizona vacation plans if you were hoping to watch the San Francisco Giants this spring.
The meeting between the Major League Baseball Players Association and MLB is over. Little progress was made. The on-time opening of spring training at this point is in grave danger and, frankly, would take a miraculous deal coming together to rescue. A delay feels inevitable.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 1, 2022
How many days has it been since the owners locked out the players?
64 miserable days. Remember when we used to count down to when pitchers and catchers would report? Those were good times. I miss those times.
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