Negotiations between MLB and the Players Association are, for the lack of a better word, stalled.
Both sides are firm in what they want and have been reluctant to make concessions, especially the owners.
The last meeting between the two parties to try to hammer out the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) was on Saturday.
Players didn’t like the offer (MLB only offered a slightly improved minimum salary and some minor tweaks to the Competitive Balance Tax), and while they are expected to meet again this week, there is no date for the next contact.
Right now, the fans are extremely frustrated: not only because they don’t know when spring training will start, but also because of the lack of dialogue.
“The most surprising/appalling element of baseball’s labor situation over the last 6-7 years is the stark diminishment of engagement and conversation. It costs nothing to talk,” ESPN insider Buster Olney tweeted on Wednesday.
The most surprising/appalling element of baseball's labor situation over the last 6-7 years is the stark diminishment of engagement and conversation. It costs nothing to talk.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) February 16, 2022
It shows a disappointing reality for fans: the ones in charge of making the decisions aren’t even talking at the moment.
There Is No Sense Of Urgency
They spent over 40 days without any constructive talks, from early December to almost mid-January.
There is no sense of urgency: owners don’t care if fans are annoyed or not, and it’s becoming painfully evident in the last few weeks.
How can fans expect to have baseball back soon if the two sides in charge of the negotiations aren’t engaging?
At this point, if the parties don’t want to lose a significant number of games of the regular season, the meetings need to be long, and much more frequent.
MLB and the union have discussed core economics issues only once in the last 14 days.
MLB and the players union are expected to meet again later this week but nothing yet has been formally scheduled as of this morning. They have met once in the last 14 days on core economic issues.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) February 16, 2022
That’s not a pace that will satisfy fans.
Everybody wants baseball, but it’s getting further and further away.
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