Tom Glavine warns MLB players: Fans will blame you if there's no season

Hall of Fame ace Tom Glavine has warned that fans will blame the players and the MLB Players Association, not MLB owners, if no season occurs amid the coronavirus pandemic because of disputes over money. 

While speaking with Steve Hummer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Glavine recalled the work stoppage that canceled the 1994 World Series and bled into the start of the '95 campaign and compared it to the situation MLB is in now due to the ongoing pandemic:

"If it were to come down to an economic issue and that’s the reason baseball didn’t come back, you’re looking at a situation similar to the strike of ’94 and ’95 as far as fans are concerned. Even if players were 100 percent justified in what they were complaining about, they’re still going to look bad."

Hummer noted how Tampa Bay Rays pitcher and 2018 Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell received criticism in the court of public opinion for saying he wouldn't play for a reduced salary during the uncontrolled virus pandemic. 

Glavine also spoke about the understandable fears players and other club personnel have about testing positive for the coronavirus and also about possibly transmitting the disease to family members and other loved ones: 

"If I was playing today, I wouldn’t say, ‘Hell no, I’m not playing.’ But of course, I’d have a concern that once you step out that door and you go back into that world, there’s a chance you’re bringing something home to your family. It’s 100 percent fair for players, coaches, everybody to be concerned about that."

Recent reports suggest the owner and players continue to squabble over a proposed 50-50 revenue split meant to void a previous agreement that offered players pro-rated salaries for a season cut short by the pandemic. That deal likely will need to be amended, though, to account for revenue lost among owners due to fans not being welcomed into ballparks for the foreseeable future. 

The UFC and NASCAR have held events in the United States behind closed doors and without spectators this month.