MLB Lockout Thread

[wildcard]

3 hours ago, connja said:

And I don't think the players play without an agreement.  While revenues continue to rise, average player salary is flat to down over the past 6 years.  

I think there will be an agreement.   An agreement to play under 2021 rules and keep negotiating for next off season.

[Frobby]

11 minutes ago, wildcard said:

I think there will be an agreement.   An agreement to play under 2021 rules and keep negotiating for next off season.

I think it’s very unlikely.  Why start a lockout at all if you aren’t prepared to carry it through until a deal is done?  And why will thinks be different next offseason?

[wildcard]

4 minutes ago, Frobby said:

I think it’s very unlikely.  Why start a lockout at all if you aren’t prepared to carry it through until a deal is done?  And why will thinks be different next offseason?

When push comes to shove both sides will lose too much money and there are too dug in on their positions to come to an agreement before the season.   They need more time and a different path to find a long term agreement.  But they can kick the can down the road in the short term.

Maybe they decide to try non binding mediation to work through it over the summer.     They need to find a way to get through this with hurting the industry .

[maybenxtyr]

4 hours ago, wildcard said:

When push comes to shove both sides will lose too much money and there are too dug in on their positions to come to an agreement before the season.   They need more time and a different path to find a long term agreement.  But they can kick the can down the road in the short term.

Maybe they decide to try non binding mediation to work through it over the summer.     They need to find a way to get through this with hurting the industry .

They have shown over time that they are willing to strike/lockout. I don't see this situation being any different. Unless of course they actually do come to an agreement.

[waroriole]

I guess it’s nice that you think this wildcard. It seems nobody agreed last time you asked, so not sure what’s changed to make you ask again so soon. 

[wildcard]

1 hour ago, waroriole said:

I guess it’s nice that you think this wildcard. It seems nobody agreed last time you asked, so not sure what’s changed to make you ask again so soon. 

Two weeks have passed and not closer to an agreement.   When it starts hitting the owners and players wallets they will need to do something and I don't think they can agree on economic issues for a 5 to 7 year period.  

A shorter period of time and some kind of mediation may be employed.

[Sports Guy]

7 minutes ago, wildcard said:

Two weeks have passed and not closer to an agreement.   When it starts hitting the owners and players wallets they will need to do something and I don't think they can agree on economic issues for a 5 to 7 year period.  

A shorter period of time and some kind of mediation may be employed.

What you are saying makes sense.  But the sensible thing, in this case, isn’t the realistic thing.  
 

Remember, this isn’t a right now thing. This is an agreement for the next 5-10 years of the sport.  It changes the landscape of everything.  That is a far bigger deal than making sure you don’t lose 1/4 of the season.  
 

Don’t get me wrong, there is no good reason for them not to figure this out because both sides are making so much money but greed almost always wins out.

[OriolesMagic83]

The general feeling is that the owners won the last CBA.  No way the players agree to the next CBA that is not decidedly in their favor or a flat out win.  The owners are more happy with the status quo than the players but want to squeeze player salaries, especially mid level salaries even more. 

The fans, you know the people who play for the whole thing, are not even on the list of concerns for the owners or players.

[Frobby]

2 hours ago, wildcard said:

Two weeks have passed and not closer to an agreement.   When it starts hitting the owners and players wallets they will need to do something and I don't think they can agree on economic issues for a 5 to 7 year period.  

A shorter period of time and some kind of mediation may be employed.

The owners might be happy to just extend the current deal ad Infinitum.   It’s the players who want concessions.   

[jarman86]

wildcard, I love your optimism and as one who wants a full season, I hope you are right and we are all wrong.

Having said that, this is going to get ugly before it gets pretty. Players and owners both have shown they are not terribly worried about current money via the COVID shortened season. Remember, we only got that season because of Manfred (I hate saying that). And probably half the league if not more didn't believe in the severity of COVID and wanted to play.  Now we are talking financials and future implications, yet I don't think anyone is considering the future costs and risks of this, which I'm not sure there are many. I truly don't think it is about the fans anymore, as they prefer to watch from home nowadays anyways.

[Moose Milligan]

I've been on record as saying that I think both sides should recognize that there's so much to lose and that they can't afford to have another '94 situation.  Or any work stoppage.

After the '94 strike, they had the good fortune of Cal and The Streak in '95 that recaptured some interest.  Then a few years later the powers that be looked the other way on PEDs while McGwire and Sosa chased the homer record.  And they continued to look the other way on PEDs until reporters started snooping around.

They can't do that again.  There's nothing on tap like Ripken and they've played out the homer barrage.  Fine, juice the ball, see what happens.  They've been bashing homers at astronomical paces for 20+ years, there's nothing new there.  What are they going to do, deaden the ball and have a bunch of low scoring, 2.5 hour games?  No one cares.

There's so much to lose but the lack of alacrity in order to hammer something out is alarming.  I didn't think there'd be a stoppage but the fact that these two sides are hardly talking is ominous.  

Unlike '94, there are so many more options for sports fans to choose from.  There are so many more THINGS to choose from to capture someone's attention in general.  

As we're getting closer to Spring Training, it's becoming more and more apparent that having pinecones like Manfred and Clark in charge of this is a sign of impending doom.  

Oh well.  

 

 

[waroriole]

2 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

I've been on record as saying that I think both sides should recognize that there's so much to lose and that they can't afford to have another '94 situation.  Or any work stoppage.

After the '94 strike, they had the good fortune of Cal and The Streak in '95 that recaptured some interest.  Then a few years later the powers that be looked the other way on PEDs while McGwire and Sosa chased the homer record.  And they continued to look the other way on PEDs until reporters started snooping around.

They can't do that again.  There's nothing on tap like Ripken and they've played out the homer barrage.  Fine, juice the ball, see what happens.  They've been bashing homers at astronomical paces for 20+ years, there's nothing new there.  What are they going to do, deaden the ball and have a bunch of low scoring, 2.5 hour games?  No one cares.

There's so much to lose but the lack of alacrity in order to hammer something out is alarming.  I didn't think there'd be a stoppage but the fact that these two sides are hardly talking is ominous.  

Unlike '94, there are so many more options for sports fans to choose from.  There are so many more THINGS to choose from to capture someone's attention in general.  

As we're getting closer to Spring Training, it's becoming more and more apparent that having pinecones like Manfred and Clark in charge of this is a sign of impending doom.  

Oh well.  

 

 

Alacrity? What are you taking the SATs?

[Moose Milligan]

6 minutes ago, waroriole said:

Alacrity? What are you taking the SATs?

**** homie, I can't help it if my vocab skills are next level.  

[wildcard]

The players made about 4 billion dollars collectively in 2021.   With the contracts signed by the end of this off season that number should go up.     For each month they don't play during the season the players collective lose about 667 million dollars.   Is it worth it to not come to an agreement?

[Frobby]

2 minutes ago, wildcard said:

The players made about 4 billion dollars collectively in 2021.   With the contracts signed by the end of this off season that number should go up.     For each month they don't play during the season the players collective lose about 667 million dollars.   Is it worth it to not come to an agreement?

Depends what concessions they get.   In any event I think any missed games will be a matter of days or weeks, not months.