2021 Collective Bargaining Negotiations

[bkox]

Breaking: MLB owners vote unanimously to institute a lockout. It is expected to begin tomorrow but unclear what time.

— Jon Heyman ( @JonHeyman ) December 2, 2021

[zambonir]

Hard to believe!

[bkox]

Major League Baseball has officially implemented a lockout, sources tell ESPN. The ninth work stoppage in the sport’s history has begun.

— Jeff Passan ( @JeffPassan ) December 2, 2021

[LoneStarPhan]

I have always been saddened by the labor disputes, strikes, and lockouts. I hope this one can be ended quickly. I see it as stupidity by both sides but I guess for the players and the owners, they see it as necessary to get things they want in the next basic agreement.

[bkox]

A letter to baseball fans

[bkox]

They removed the headshots from https://t.co/UfApTwx13P rosters. pic.twitter.com/x43zle6tLK

— Matt Gelb ( @MattGelb ) December 2, 2021

[LoneStarPhan]

All this strikes a negative feeling for MLB and the owners.

Just my opinion, but MLB seems to be incredible stupid in their PR moves.

[saycheese]

This is really a sad day for baseball, the rift is wide and long. I think we all have seen the writing on the wall for some time. As has been outlined in this thread some of these proposals have been outlandish to say the least. Bottom line is this, the players want more of a piece of the pie and the owners want to give them less. Has been that way with labor issues since the start of them. Everything else is just eye candy, DH in the National league, draft pick compensation, additional playoff teams. Those are easy to figure out. You replace the draft pick compensation with a system similar to what the NFL does. If you lose more than you gain you get an extra pick. No one loses a draft pick but you could gain extra picks. The DH is implemented in the National League along with two additional playoff teams in the NL and AL. The revenue piece is the issue. A salary cap isn't going to happen, revenue sharing is dicey at best. I have never been a fan of the luxury tax. I am not smart enough to know how to fix this. I know this whatever they come up with will ultimately hurt the competitiveness of the sport even more. If you start salary arbitration a year earlier, well that will just cause the teams like the Pirates or A's to trade off those assets sooner. Further widen the gap. I can rant some more. I know this the last couple of weeks have proven one thing, the sport is flush with cash and player salary is going up for the player who PERFORM at a pretty good rate. Ultimately the people will suffer the most from this are the Fans. Rant over. See you all in six to eight months when this is all settled

[VoteForKalas]

Pathetic, the billionaires and millionaires fighting over money again and the sport, fans and future of the game suffer the consequences. Good job guys! That is the way to grow the game!

I will pay even less attention than normal this off-season, but hope they pull their heads out from between their legs soon. The total lack of leadership and vision is astounding, but that is true all across our country now unfortunately.

[andyb]

That letter really strikes the wrong tone for me. It is a public negotiation letter where they should have taken a much more simple and apologetic tone. The whole "divide the players" by focusing on distracting issues really is going to make this thing take an ugly turn. Plus, the players are receiving a smaller share of revenue now than in the previous agreement no matter how MLB spins it. They have the better argument on most of the core issues, especially when you see the skyrocketing franchise values.

[bkox]

Major League Portion Of Rule 5 Draft Canceled https://t.co/66SznqnJFO pic.twitter.com/U7NMIM89ra

— MLB Trade Rumors ( @mlbtraderumors ) December 2, 2021

[Philsmania]

Something tells me this will take a while.

Meanwhile, the Phillies will still charge my credit card payments toward my season ticket account.

[julio]

Something tells me this will take a while.

Meanwhile, the Phillies will still charge my credit card payments toward my season ticket account.

Only if you let them.

[zambonir]

Yeah, I don't imagine seats are so scarce that you couldn't just cancel until the lockout ends - you know they'll keep calling you if you do - but if you're attached to your current price/package/location, of course they'll squeeze you.

After the no--fans season would be nice if they suspended payments but it would be nice if they did a lot of things. Plus, we're still a long ways away from a delayed season.

[Taudawg]

Update - Rule 5 postponed, not cancelled

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2021/12/major-league-portion-of-rule-5-draft-canceled.html

[bkox]

All the players are changing their social media profile pics to:

[andyb]

I wonder if it is some sort of NFT issue where teams really don't have the right to show pictures of any current player during a lockout.

Of course this is all petty posturing that will make it more difficult for both sides to make a deal.

[LoneStarPhan]

Another day of the lock out and my opinion of MLB goes down a little more.

I agree that reading that letter from MLB really turned me off. I might just be so old that I give up following ML baseball like I have for about 70 years. Really, is it that important?

Sure, once this is all settled, I will probably be back following the Phillies and watching games, but golly, this labor dispute really ticks me off.

[bkeich]

Reading the commissioner ad for the owners, errr… I mean letter, I am reminded of the creation of the position of Commissioner to act in the best interest of the game, not just the owners. That job description died with Judge Landis I believe.

[bkox]

Pitch clocks!...Shift bans!...Robot umps!...The Double Hook!

They won't be coming to a bargaining table near you - because, in a surprise move, MLB has taken rule changes off that table.

I looked into why - and how it could endanger the chances of a deal https://t.co/63a0E7uX6D

— Jayson Stark ( @jaysonst ) December 3, 2021