Negotiations between MLB and the MLB Players Association went on for weeks before the sides finally agreed on terms to play a shortened 2020 season. The owners ended up implementing a 60-game season and asking the players to report by July 1, which they agreed to do.
To sum up the differences, the owners wanted the players to take a pay cut on top of accepting prorated pay for the shortened season to account for the lack of revenue due to the absence of fans at games. Among the players’ issues were: they felt that the owners were overstating their revenue losses; that they shouldn’t be paid less after the sides reached an agreement on pay in March; and that they should not be paid less for the same work that will be performed in conditions where there is a greater health risk.
Though the owners voted 30-0 in favor of scheduling the season, the players had some dissent on their most recent vote (33-5) about rejecting MLB’s proposal.
According to a report, some of the dissenters felt marginalized by the union.
SNY’s Andy Martino wrote an excellent article about the labor situation between MLB and the union that is highly advised for you to read. In the article, Martino says some players in the union felt Bauer was more interested in tweeting than contributing. Martino says the other side is that Bauer and another player, executive board member Daniel Murphy, felt marginalized when expressing a differing viewpoint.
From the article:
The other side to that is that players like Bauer sometimes felt marginalized when they did try to engage and express views that differed from prominent voices on the executive board.
Bauer is not alone in feeling frozen out by Clark and Meyer’s union; one source said that executive board member Daniel Murphy, a “yes” vote, was “isolated” by some of his fellow players.
Murphy, 35, is a three-time All-Star and currently with the Rockies. Bauer pitches for the Cincinnati Reds and has been vocal about negotiations on Twitter. He has taken shots at both sides, at times ripping MLB and commissioner Rob Manfred, while also suggesting Scott Boras was interfering with the union and that the union was part of the problem in negotiations.
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