Must admit, I'm surprised the league-imposed 2020 Major League Baseball schedule is going to be 60 games. I figured the owners would want a 48- or 52-game schedule, but I suppose by playing 60, they increase their chances of winning in court when the MLBPA inevitably files a grievance arguing that owners didn't bargain in good faith.
Anyway ... the latest news ... the union informed the league Tuesday that it will comply with the imposed outline for the 2020 season. Players will report to spring, err.., summer training on July 1, and the season is expected to begin July 24.
The two sides still are working to finalize health and safety protocols. The league is expected to conclude its regular season Sept. 27 -- for those scoring at home, that means 60 games in 66 days. The usual 10-team playoff format applies, and that should be over by the end of October.
If the league and the players can avoid having this whole thing shut down by stupid COVID-19. Let's hope the infections are kept to a minimum, and that we can have baseball. Well, hopefully, there are no infections, but I'm not sure how realistic that is.
Showing posts with label labor negotiations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label labor negotiations. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 23, 2020
Monday, June 22, 2020
MLBPA votes down 60-game proposal
The MLB Players Association voted, 33-5, on Monday to reject Major League Baseball's proposal to start the 2020 season, sources say.
The vote was conducted by the union's eight-member executive committee, plus one player representative per team.
The proposal called for:
Where do we go from here? Well, we wait for MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to tell the players "when and where" the 2020 season will begin, if it begins at all.
I think there are three ways this could go. MLB could cancel the season, fearing that COVID-19 could torpedo the playoffs in October, thus cutting off a large source of revenue that owners are counting on.
Or, Manfred could call for a season of 48 games, get the regular season over as quickly as possible, and hope for the best with the usual 10-team playoff.
Or, owners could be altruistic, have Manfred mandate a 60-game season and hope the playoffs get completed.
As a baseball fan, I hope the last option will happen, but rationally, I know better. We are looking squarely at one of the first two options I mentioned.
A 75% yes vote would be required to pass any plan Manfred chooses to implement. If eight owners vote to cancel the season, there will be no season.
The vote was conducted by the union's eight-member executive committee, plus one player representative per team.
The proposal called for:
- a 60-game season
- a 16-team expanded playoff
- prorated pay for players
- no additional salary guarantees should the season be canceled because of COVID-19
- the union to waive its right to file a grievance claiming the owners did not negotiate in good faith
Where do we go from here? Well, we wait for MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to tell the players "when and where" the 2020 season will begin, if it begins at all.
I think there are three ways this could go. MLB could cancel the season, fearing that COVID-19 could torpedo the playoffs in October, thus cutting off a large source of revenue that owners are counting on.
Or, Manfred could call for a season of 48 games, get the regular season over as quickly as possible, and hope for the best with the usual 10-team playoff.
Or, owners could be altruistic, have Manfred mandate a 60-game season and hope the playoffs get completed.
As a baseball fan, I hope the last option will happen, but rationally, I know better. We are looking squarely at one of the first two options I mentioned.
A 75% yes vote would be required to pass any plan Manfred chooses to implement. If eight owners vote to cancel the season, there will be no season.
Wednesday, June 17, 2020
Finally, a glimmer of hope in the MLB negotiations
Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred issued a statement Wednesday, and here it is:
“At my request, Tony Clark and I met for several hours yesterday in Phoenix. We left that meeting with a jointly developed framework that we agreed could form the basis of an agreement and subject to conversations with our respective constituents. I summarized that framework numerous times in the meeting and sent Tony a written summary today. Consistent with our conversations yesterday, I am encouraging the Clubs to move forward and I trust Tony is doing the same.”
Nothing has been agreed upon yet, but The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich posted a good article Wednesday night outlining the progress toward a deal that could start the 2020 season.
During the face-to-face meeting between Manfred and Clark, the owners offered a major concession: Players will get their full prorated salaries if the season is played. The league proposed a 60-game season that would start about July 19 or 20 and take place over 70 days.
The number of games remains a sticking point, according to The Athletic report. Players would like 70 games, of course, to maximize their earnings. The owners want 60 games, but with the season being played over a period of 70 days, perhaps there is room for compromise in there. Maybe 65 or 66 games in those 70 days?
If the season is 60 games, players would receive about 37% of their salaries, which is more than in any of the previous offers made by the owners. If 65 games are played, players would get 40% of their salaries, and I think that might be enough to broker a deal.
The league also has asked the union to consent to expanded playoffs in 2020 and 2021, and waive its right to file a grievance over scheduling. The latter would be a big concession from the union, but I don't think it's too big of an ask given that the owners have moved to allow full prorated salaries to be paid.
Let's hope this is the beginning of the end of this whole sad episode, and that we can have baseball back in about a month.
“At my request, Tony Clark and I met for several hours yesterday in Phoenix. We left that meeting with a jointly developed framework that we agreed could form the basis of an agreement and subject to conversations with our respective constituents. I summarized that framework numerous times in the meeting and sent Tony a written summary today. Consistent with our conversations yesterday, I am encouraging the Clubs to move forward and I trust Tony is doing the same.”
Nothing has been agreed upon yet, but The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich posted a good article Wednesday night outlining the progress toward a deal that could start the 2020 season.
During the face-to-face meeting between Manfred and Clark, the owners offered a major concession: Players will get their full prorated salaries if the season is played. The league proposed a 60-game season that would start about July 19 or 20 and take place over 70 days.
The number of games remains a sticking point, according to The Athletic report. Players would like 70 games, of course, to maximize their earnings. The owners want 60 games, but with the season being played over a period of 70 days, perhaps there is room for compromise in there. Maybe 65 or 66 games in those 70 days?
If the season is 60 games, players would receive about 37% of their salaries, which is more than in any of the previous offers made by the owners. If 65 games are played, players would get 40% of their salaries, and I think that might be enough to broker a deal.
The league also has asked the union to consent to expanded playoffs in 2020 and 2021, and waive its right to file a grievance over scheduling. The latter would be a big concession from the union, but I don't think it's too big of an ask given that the owners have moved to allow full prorated salaries to be paid.
Let's hope this is the beginning of the end of this whole sad episode, and that we can have baseball back in about a month.
Monday, June 15, 2020
Rob Manfred takes his shot at title of worst commissioner ever
Rob Manfred on June 10: "We're going to play baseball in 2020, 100 percent."
MLB Players Association: "Tell us when and where."
Rob Manfred on June 15: "I'm not confident [there will be a season]. I think there's real risk, and as long as there's no dialogue, that real risk is gonna continue."
You can't help but hate the commissioner of Major League Baseball. After all, he hates baseball, a game many of us love. He's threatening to pull the plug on the 2020 season on the same day he's appearing on an ESPN special called, "The Return of Sports."
Oh, the irony.
Add his gross mismanagement of the restart negotiations to a list of transgressions that includes his push to destroy minor league baseball, his asinine handling of the electronic cheating scandal and his plans to implement a laundry list of ridiculous rule changes, and you have the worst commissioner in the history of baseball.
These talks on the potential restart of the season amid the COVID-19 pandemic have been a farce, with the owners repackaging the same offer over and over again. Every thing they've offered ends in the same place, with the players being offered between 33% and 35% of their prorated pay. They're not going to take that; get a clue, Manfred!
And it's asinine for the owners to say the players are acting in "bad faith." The owners have done nothing but act in bad faith for years, screwing players over with service time manipulation, refusing to sign middle-tier free agents, stocking rosters with Quad-A players to "tank" seasons in the name of better draft positions, and downplaying players' abilities in arbitration hearings.
Granted, none of these things are against the rules. Some say it's "smart business," but one man's "smart business" is another man's bad faith. Over the past few years, we've routinely seen players get outleveraged on the business side of the game, and what's the response? "Welp, the players need to negotiate a better deal."
OK, fine, and now the players are, in fact, taking a hard line to try to get a better deal. Can you blame them? I can't.
I'm left with the conclusion that the owners simply don't want to play this year, because they will lose money, and they are sending Manfred out there to do their bidding.
Newsflash: In the middle of a pandemic, nobody is making money this year. It's about mitigating losses and living to fight another day right now. MLB is going to have even more trouble when another day comes because of all the bad will it is building up with fans and players right now.
I mean, let's be honest about this. If attendance suddenly shot up, would owners tack on some of those extra revenues to player contracts? Of course not. The contracts were signed, and a deal is a deal.
The same is true when the opposite happens. There will be no attendance, so revenues are going down. But you know what? The contracts were signed, and a deal is a deal. Both sides have to abide by the agreed upon terms regardless of what the overall revenues are.
The players are entitled to earn the salaries they negotiated, prorated to the number of games they play -- if any -- this season.
If Manfred was any kind of leader at all, he'd explain this to the owners. The owners are stewards of the game, and they are responsible for its long-term well-being. Right now, they are hurting the game's long-term well-being in the name of trying to avoid losses in 2020.
It's a failing strategy.
MLB Players Association: "Tell us when and where."
Rob Manfred on June 15: "I'm not confident [there will be a season]. I think there's real risk, and as long as there's no dialogue, that real risk is gonna continue."
You can't help but hate the commissioner of Major League Baseball. After all, he hates baseball, a game many of us love. He's threatening to pull the plug on the 2020 season on the same day he's appearing on an ESPN special called, "The Return of Sports."
Oh, the irony.
Add his gross mismanagement of the restart negotiations to a list of transgressions that includes his push to destroy minor league baseball, his asinine handling of the electronic cheating scandal and his plans to implement a laundry list of ridiculous rule changes, and you have the worst commissioner in the history of baseball.
These talks on the potential restart of the season amid the COVID-19 pandemic have been a farce, with the owners repackaging the same offer over and over again. Every thing they've offered ends in the same place, with the players being offered between 33% and 35% of their prorated pay. They're not going to take that; get a clue, Manfred!
And it's asinine for the owners to say the players are acting in "bad faith." The owners have done nothing but act in bad faith for years, screwing players over with service time manipulation, refusing to sign middle-tier free agents, stocking rosters with Quad-A players to "tank" seasons in the name of better draft positions, and downplaying players' abilities in arbitration hearings.
Granted, none of these things are against the rules. Some say it's "smart business," but one man's "smart business" is another man's bad faith. Over the past few years, we've routinely seen players get outleveraged on the business side of the game, and what's the response? "Welp, the players need to negotiate a better deal."
OK, fine, and now the players are, in fact, taking a hard line to try to get a better deal. Can you blame them? I can't.
I'm left with the conclusion that the owners simply don't want to play this year, because they will lose money, and they are sending Manfred out there to do their bidding.
Newsflash: In the middle of a pandemic, nobody is making money this year. It's about mitigating losses and living to fight another day right now. MLB is going to have even more trouble when another day comes because of all the bad will it is building up with fans and players right now.
I mean, let's be honest about this. If attendance suddenly shot up, would owners tack on some of those extra revenues to player contracts? Of course not. The contracts were signed, and a deal is a deal.
The same is true when the opposite happens. There will be no attendance, so revenues are going down. But you know what? The contracts were signed, and a deal is a deal. Both sides have to abide by the agreed upon terms regardless of what the overall revenues are.
The players are entitled to earn the salaries they negotiated, prorated to the number of games they play -- if any -- this season.
If Manfred was any kind of leader at all, he'd explain this to the owners. The owners are stewards of the game, and they are responsible for its long-term well-being. Right now, they are hurting the game's long-term well-being in the name of trying to avoid losses in 2020.
It's a failing strategy.
Monday, June 8, 2020
MLB's latest proposal for a 76-game season doesn't help matters
Reports that MLB would not offer another proposal for resuming play apparently were false, as the league apparently sent the players association a new proposal on Monday.
Too bad it isn't going to bring us much closer to starting the 2020 season.
Here are the particulars:
By way of comparison, if commissioner Rob Manfred unilaterally imposed a 50-game season with players receiving prorated salaries -- which Manfred is allowed to do according to a deal agreed upon in March -- players would receive only 31 percent of their usual salaries.
If you're a player, do you want to play 26 more games -- and risk your health 26 more times -- for such a small increase in pay? I'm guessing not.
The owners' first proposal included 82 games and a "sliding scale" of salaries, and the players' cut in this 76-game proposal is only percentage points higher.
In other words, the owners are basically proposing the same thing over and over again: 82 games, 50 games, 76 games, it doesn't matter. All of these proposals have the players receiving roughly the same amount of salary.
The owners want the public to believe they've moved, going from 50 games to 76, but in the players' eyes, they haven't really moved at all.
It's still hard to be optimistic that we'll see baseball this summer, even with the country crying out for entertainment and some normalcy.
Too bad it isn't going to bring us much closer to starting the 2020 season.
Here are the particulars:
- There would be a 76-game regular season, ending Sept. 27. Playoffs would conclude at the end of October, as per usual.
- Players would only be guaranteed 50% of their already prorated salaries for the regular season. If the postseason is completed without a "second wave" of COVID-19 in the fall, players would receive up to 75% of their prorated salaries.
- Draft pick compensation would be removed for the upcoming free agent class. In other words, if you sign a free agent next offseason, you don't have to forfeit a draft pick to the team that you signed the player away from. In the past, this rule has been cited as a reason why teams shy away from signing veteran free agents.
By way of comparison, if commissioner Rob Manfred unilaterally imposed a 50-game season with players receiving prorated salaries -- which Manfred is allowed to do according to a deal agreed upon in March -- players would receive only 31 percent of their usual salaries.
If you're a player, do you want to play 26 more games -- and risk your health 26 more times -- for such a small increase in pay? I'm guessing not.
The owners' first proposal included 82 games and a "sliding scale" of salaries, and the players' cut in this 76-game proposal is only percentage points higher.
In other words, the owners are basically proposing the same thing over and over again: 82 games, 50 games, 76 games, it doesn't matter. All of these proposals have the players receiving roughly the same amount of salary.
The owners want the public to believe they've moved, going from 50 games to 76, but in the players' eyes, they haven't really moved at all.
It's still hard to be optimistic that we'll see baseball this summer, even with the country crying out for entertainment and some normalcy.
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