Even as MLB and the MLB Players Association held opposing views regarding an international draft, there was some hope Wednesday that the two sides could come to an agreement to end the lockout that caused the cancellation of at least the first two series of the regular season and wiped out spring training games through March 18.
That hope officially disappeared early Wednesday evening when MLB commissioner Rob Manfred confirmed via a statement that fans won't get Opening Day before mid-April at the earliest.
"In a last-ditch effort to preserve a 162-game season, this week we have made good-faith proposals that address the specific concerns voiced by the MLBPA and would have allowed the players to return to the field immediately," Manfred said. "The Clubs went to extraordinary lengths to meet the substantial demands of the MLBPA. On the key economic issues that have posed stumbling blocks, the Clubs proposed ways to bridge gaps to preserve a full schedule. Regrettably, after our second late-night bargaining session in a week, we remain without a deal.
"Because of the logistical realities of the calendar, another two series are being removed from the schedule, meaning that Opening Day is postponed until April 14th. We worked hard to reach an agreement and offered a fair deal with significant improvements for the players and our fans. I am saddened by this situation’s continued impact on our game and all those who are a part of it, especially our loyal fans.
"We have the utmost respect for our players and hope they will ultimately choose to accept the fair agreement they have been offered."
Per MLB Network insider Jon Heyman, things turned ugly earlier in the day:
Folks on both sides are saying the other side doesn’t want to do a deal. I think those folks are wrong. The one obvious thing is that missed games would be devastating for the sport. They all have to know that much!
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 9, 2022
Players have seemed very much together from the start. And now owners for the first time seem galvanized. This misunderstanding (or more) over who introduced the international draft into the process and what was said in Jupiter has at least for the moment poisoned the well.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 9, 2022
As Bob Nightengale of USA Today pointed out, MLB has threatened that players will not be paid for games missed that cannot be made up as doubleheaders or via extended or altered schedules. Additionally, it now seems nearly impossible that spring training contests could be held in Arizona and Florida at any point this month:
Needless to say, this could wipe out all of the spring-training games that were originally scheduled in Arizona and Florida. MLB likely will schedule some spring training games whenever the lockout ends, but this is a massive blow to the fans and economy of the two states.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) March 9, 2022
ESPN notes that MLB and MLBPA representatives negotiated for 17 hours in discussions that began Tuesday morning and ran past 3 a.m. ET Wednesday. The worry now is any breakthroughs made during those talks will be tossed out the figurative window:
How far will owners’ lockout go? No games until April 14. The 75th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s major-league debut is April 15.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) March 9, 2022
ESPN's Marly Rivera reports there were no plans for discussions to be held Thursday as of approximately 7:15 p.m. ET:
Per Union source, there are no plans for continued discussions tomorrow "at the moment" (but that could change). Union says MLB did "an about face" and wouldn’t respond to their counter offer unless they agreed to a proposal on how to deal with the international draft.
— Marly Rivera (@MarlyRiveraESPN) March 9, 2022
Meanwhile, the MLBPA called MLB's decision to cancel more games "completely unnecessary" in a brief statement:
Statement from the Major League Baseball Players Association: pic.twitter.com/XLnAvwkFpm
— MLBPA Communications (@MLBPA_News) March 10, 2022
SNY's Andy Martino explained there's still a chance fans could get "most of a full season" depending on what occurs between the sides before the week ends:
"We're not quite at the deadline yet where the league would have to cancel significant games"@martinonyc on the next 2 series of the season being canceled, what couldn't be agreed on in these rounds of negotiations, and what comes next. pic.twitter.com/Q9yoJt2ALO
— SNY (@SNYtv) March 10, 2022
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