The block imposed by the owner of Major League Baseball, on its 98th day, faces another decisive phase on Wednesday. Representatives of the MLB Players Association and the league continued negotiations after the two sides spoke and exchanged proposals until 3:00 am ET on Tuesday. The MLB has reportedly set another self-imposed deadline this week: If a deal is reached on Wednesday for a new collective bargaining deal, players will be referring to spring training this weekend and play a full 162-game season in the 2022; in case of no agreement on Wednesday, other matches of the regular season will be canceled.
What are becoming known as the “core economic issues,” a complicated tipping point in negotiations for nearly all work stoppages, no longer appear to be the main obstacle to a new collective bargaining agreement. Rather, it is the league’s desire to implement an international project that appears to be the last major obstacle. However, it seems unlikely the union would agree at this time because a sizable block of MLBPA members oppose an international draft:
While the union has in the past used the changes to the national project as a bargaining commodity even though the recruits are not yet members of the players’ association, the implementation of an international project – which MLB reportedly wouldn’t start until 2024 – can be more complicated for the reasons given by Rosenthal above. Fernando Tatis Jr. of the Father is one such MLBPA member who recently voiced his concerns, and he’s certainly not alone in these concerns. Threading that needle will undoubtedly be complicated for union leadership and may not be possible.
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has already canceled the first two series of the 2022 season and postponed the opening day last week after talks between the two sides faded on March 1. Those games, however, could be made up and USA Today’s Bob Nightengale says opening day would be April 6 or 7 for the teams if there is an agreement on Wednesday. The owners moved on some key issues on Tuesday (more about this here), and in their proposal they raised the threshold of baseball competitive balance tax to $ 230 million in 2022. The MLBPA has proposed a CBT threshold starting at $ 238 million in 2022, with that number rising to $ 263 million by CBA year 5 (the MLB number would only rise to $ 242 million in year 5).
Will we find a deal on Wednesday? CBS Sports will provide real-time updates and analytics from the negotiations. You can follow below.
