The MLB season’s Opening Day, scheduled for March 26, was delayed indefinitely in the middle of March because of the intensifying pandemic. Two months later, the League and the players association started negotiating the resumption of the season. The discussions were tough, with proposals and counterproposals being discussed.
Owners Propose 2020 MLB Season Featuring 76 Games, Further Pay Cuts
The two parties have exchanged several offers, with the MLBA proposing a longer season with as little pay cuts as possible, and the MLB proposing a shorter season and prorated salaries at best. As you might expect, an agreement has still not been reached, and right now, it’s as likely as winning two consecutive jackpots at the 7Sultans Online Casino.
A short timeline
Before they even started negotiating with the MLBA, the owners agreed upon a plan that includes an 82-game season and an expanded postseason with 14 teams. The official talks between the MLB and the MLBA began on May 12, with the union pushing back on the new agreement, considering the payment issue settled in March. The 50-50 pay split between the owners and the players is “not worth” the risk of contracting the novel coronavirus, Blake Snell said on Twitch.
On May 20, the MLB made a formal proposal to the players’ union that involved further pay cuts to compensate for the owners’ losses – up to $640,000 per game, according to some reports. On May 26, the MLBPA declared itself “disappointed” by the latest proposal that includes a sliding compensation scale and wanted to see documents that will support the financial distress the owners claim to be looming the league if no fans can be present at the games.
On May 31, the MLBPA proposed a 114-game season played between June 30 and October 31 calling for extended playoffs for the next two years and giving players the possibility to opt out of the salary deferral plan if the postseason is shortened or canceled. The MLB rejected this offer on June 3.
A day later, the MLB expressed its willingness to pay the players their prorated salaries for the 2020 season – like the parties agreed on in March – but wanted to cut the season even shorter, to just 50 games. The players, as expected, resoundingly rejected any further pay cuts.
The latest proposal
The latest proposal from the MLB was made on June 8. It involved 76 games in the season at 75% prorated pay, playoff pool money, and no MLB draft pick compensation for signing players. As per the proposal, the season would end on September 27 with the postseason ending in October.
The MLBPA sees this proposal as being worse than the previous ones. An official response is expected by the MLB by June 10th – and with each passing day, the season is getting shorter and shorter.
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