From the LA Times: Owners don’t want to pay players for more than 50 games if there are no fans in the seats. Players say that’s nonsense, and we’ve accepted all the pay cuts we’re going to in this situation.
I don’t know who’s right, but the chance of baseball in 2020 isn’t looking promising.
From The Athletic:
Earlier this week, Major League Baseball communicated its intention to schedule a dramatically shortened 2020 season unless players negotiate salary concessions. The concessions being sought are in addition to billions in player salary reductions that have already been agreed upon.
“This threat came in response to an association proposal aimed at charting a path forward. Among other things, players proposed more games, two years of expanded playoffs, salary deferrals in the event of a 2020 playoff cancellation, and the exploration of additional jewel events and broadcast enhancements aimed at creatively bringing our players to the fans while simultaneously increasing the value of our product. Rather than engage, the league replied it will shorten the season unless Players agree to further salary reductions.”
The players believe they already took one reduction when they agreed their 2020 salaries would be paid on a prorated basis, based upon the number of games played. MLB maintains the March agreement allowed it to pursue additional cuts based upon language concerning the “economic feasibility” of playing without spectators and suggests the union misrepresented the March deal to players by saying no further negotiation was necessary. The union’s bottom line is that nothing forces the players to accept another reduction.
https://twitter.com/nut_history/status/1274322820063997953?s=20
The Gnats have also shut it down, in Arizona. https://twitter.com/extrabaggs/status/1274090598073421825?s=20
In the end, the lack of safe conditions is going to make any agreement moot.
Imagine how much worse the NBA and NFL will be.
The Athletic:
https://twitter.com/JSalisburyNBCS/status/1274006836639866880?s=20
Florida prematurely re-opened, as have about 20 other states. I’m not surprised.
The Scrub Jays are also shutting down their Florida operation.https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2020/06/blue-jays-shut-down-spring-facility.html
Leadership. https://twitter.com/ClaytonKersh22/status/1273687030006980616
Time to make it a national holiday.
That and Election Day.
Old friend has other talents. https://twitter.com/jonweisman/status/1273357690278801408?s=20
Verducci at SI: There’s still hope.
Verducci goes very easy on Manfred and the owners.
For the first time in my memory most of the sportswriters have “sided” with the players. It may be they recognize what owners in the baseball industry are doing is similar to what owners in the media industry have been doing — screw your employees whenever possible.
This is more about the great Jim Bouton. https://twitter.com/SmirkingChimp/status/1273218073944875014?s=20
https://twitter.com/williamfleitch/status/1273027026753069056?s=20
Infuriating.
Commissioner and owners not even willing to accept their own terms. https://twitter.com/JeffPassan/status/1272632885397291008?s=20
The players want a settlement. The owners want unconditional surrender.
Shaikin at the LA TImes:
MLB’s claim that the players didn’t negotiate in good faith is belied by that last paragraphs. If MLB didn’t move off that point of the same money despite the March agreement to prorate salaries, it’s hard for me to believe an arbitrator would find in its favor.
Buster Olney
It’s time to revoke baseball’s anti-trust exemption.
Congress might actually do it this time, if it gets the opportunity. Write your Senators!
OTOH, it was brought before SCOTUS just two years ago and the Court reaffirmed it, but even the clubs admit that Congress could change it if it wants to.
Rule No. 5 violation!
Blog owner issues a one-time exemption!
Where is the corpse of Bart Giamatti, when we really need him?
Also in that Shaikin column, this tidbit about the Turner billion-dollar deal MLB just signed:
Owners: “Nope, we don’t make any money. We do this as a public service.”
Meanwhile, the owners are getting richer while crying poormouth.
Trevor Bauer (Reds pitcher) on the TBS deal.
Here we go.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/a6f03fc8062e130d9c32535cf3b1a2a83eaaa4598e492fb7e3e4af040c096708.jpg
On this date in history. https://twitter.com/gummyarts/status/1271857957798645762?s=20
Dodger coach’s mother was on FBI watchlist. https://twitter.com/jphoornstra/status/1271596409033314304?s=20
Count on the owners to take a bad situation, and then make it worse. https://twitter.com/truebluela/status/1271553542948564993?s=20
Owners gonna owner, to paraphrase some movie phrase.
4 pitchers, an outfielder and a catcher. That was the haul on Day Two of the amateur draft.
Day One’s edition netted RHP Bobby Miller.
Just wondering what Knack’s warmup song will be…
Even if Mike Davis did almost nothing in the regular season, it’s hard to forget his contribution to the 1988 championship. https://twitter.com/dodgers_cards/status/1271131004116168704?s=20
Dodgers’ first-round pick likely to violate Rule No. 1.
https://twitter.com/dodgers_cards/status/1271131004116168704?s=20
Dodgers’ first-round pick likely to violate Rule No. 1.
Former Berkeley High star and seven-team major leaguer Claudell Washington has died in SF, at age 65. At age 20, he was on the 1974 A’s team that beat the Dodgers in the Series, hitting .571 (4-for-7) https://twitter.com/susanslusser/status/1270754219809574912?s=20
When athletes who are younger than I die, athletes I remember, it saddens me.
Who’s trying and who’s not? The players are the good guys and the owners are not, says NBC Sports’ Craig Calcaterra.
Calcaterra’s 100 percent right.
The Athletic:
The latest offer from MLB still has poison pills.
Workers of the world, unite! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86-fB09YaYc
Joey Votto speaks up. https://twitter.com/PavlovicNBCS/status/1269782206307852289?s=20
John’s observations. https://twitter.com/jonweisman/status/1269751207091818497?s=20
If you can read the NYT there’s a sad story about the plight of one (of hundreds) minor league team and its employees during this non-season.
I just saw the hard copy version, which is shorter with fewer photographs.
The baseball-reference.com site, a treasure-trove of major and minor league baseball, is simulating the 2020 season replete with standings, individual statistics and transactions through a program of Out Of The Park Baseball (OOTP)
https://www.baseball-reference.com/sim/leagues/MLB/2020.shtml
https://www.sports-reference.com/blog/2020/03/baseball-reference-simulating-2020-season-with-out-of-the-park-baseball-21/
I stumbled across it and have looked at it a a few times. In this simulation, the Dodgers have a 20-game lead in the NL West at 47-17, easily the best mark in the majors. What is funny is that in this simulation Pollock has played in only 13 games. I guess that even in baseball’s Twilight Zone he gets injured.
That middle link of yours doesn’t work.
Worked for me.
MLBPA’s statement yesterday
Players are willing to compromise and, in fact, have already done so. Owners are not.
There needs to be at least an 81 game season. 81 is half a season so I don’t understand why 82 keeps being what seems like what will happen if it happens.
Meanwhile, the NBA, the NHL and the WNBA all are moving ahead, albeit cautiously, to resume/start their seasons.
The timing couldn’t have been worse for the baseball season.
The NBA could be a real hothouse for contagion – everybody up close and personal.
With such an intractable ownership, it’s hard to think positively about the situation.
Love to see Mookie play for the Dodgers, but at this point I’m all for waiving off the 2020 season.
I will miss baseball, but stopping the pandemic is more important.