The MLB lockout has dragged through February and is likely going to drag into the month of March as well.
The lockout began on December 2 and negotiating sessions since then have been fruitless to this point.
Now MLB is looking at a potentially shortened season in 2022, as the February 28 deadline for a new CBA to be put into place without games being lost is here, and the clock is ticking very fast.
League officials just walked over to speak with players for the first bargaining session of the day.
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) February 28, 2022
There haven’t been many signs of progress to this point.
Each time a bargaining session takes place, the two sides seem to barely make any headway, with progress coming only in small increments.
What This Means
Today is February 28, the proposed deadline to save Opening Day, and thus far, things have not gone very well.
MLB had set today as the deadline, and if a deal isn’t reached by the end of the day, then Opening Day will be delayed, and games will be lost on the 2022 schedule.
If anything, the 2020 return to play negotiations amidst the outbreak of COVID-19 across the nation should have taught us something.
At that point, the writing was on the wall, and a lockout, or any kind of work stoppage, was imminent.
Where Things Stand
The two sides do not like each other and have been at war ever since COVID put baseball, and other sports, on hold.
There is no agreement in sight, unless something crazy happens today, in which case an agreement would come out of nowhere and the two sides would finally see eye to eye on these issues.
But that is unlikely to happen.
Baseball is at an inflection point, and as fans continue to turn away, one can’t help but wonder what the future holds for the sport.
NEXT: MLB Is Reportedly Ready To Cancel A Lot Of Games