Public Enemy Number One?
As expected, Major League Baseball and Major League Baseball Player’s Union did not come to an agreement. Yesterday, the owners allowed one more day at the negotiation table. I feel like a sucker, as last night a tweet mentioned that both sides would work through the night to finalize a deal. The league made a final offer for the collective bargaining threshold set at 220 million, a minimum player’s salary of 675,000 dollars and 20 million dollars in bonus pool money.
Just exactly how far apart were both sides?
The union wanted the league to set the collective bargaining threshold at 245 million, the league minimum salary set at 775,000 dollars and 225 million dollars in bonus pool money. The 5 p.m. deadline came and went. As a result, commissioner Rob Manford announced that the first two season series have been canceled.
It is the first time in 27 years a labor dispute has cost Major league Baseball a delay of opening day and losing games. This marks the 9th work stoppage in Major League Baseball history. It is worth noting that there were 13 negotiating sessions and over 16.5 hours on Monday. Rob Manford spoke about the work stoppage, “The concerns of our fans are at the very top of our consideration list.” I don’t buy that at all. If that was the case, a deal would have been finalized, and opening day would start on time. Rob Manford is a big part of this problem because he is responsible for what goes on in the sport and has all the power. Major League owners are part of the problem too. By being greedy and wanting to keep their power. Also, the players have been unrealistic with their demands and I understand they are trying to make more money, but they end up losing out.
Which party is mainly responsible for this lockout, the commissioner, the owners, or the players? It is time to put egos aside, I want to hear “play ball.”
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