For as dismal as things looked exactly one year ago when it appeared that there would be no baseball in 2020, Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association did a phenomenal job salvaging the 2020 season and postseason. In fact, with the country (and the entire world, for that matter) quarantined at home due to the coronavirus, television viewership hit record highs.

But that was then and this is now.

On Sunday morning, Yahoo Sports‘ Tim Brown reported (on Twitter) that late last week, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred had submitted a detailed proposal for the 2021 pre and postseason, including Spring Training, which is currently scheduled to begin on Saturday, February 27, 2021, in Florida (the Grapefruit League) and Arizona (the Cactus League) to MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark. The proposal calls for a 154-game season, with an expanded postseason that could run into November “for the health and safety of everyone involved” (per MLB Trade Rumors).

But that was then and this is now.

Late Sunday evening, MLB Trade Rumors posted this:

“According to multiple reports, one of the MLBPA’s other concerns about the league’s offer is that the players believe commissioner Rob Manfred would have too much extra power to modify the schedule (or cancel games outright).  The players are under no obligation to negotiate any sort of altered procedures for the start or length of the 2021 season, and thus without a new deal in place to modify the terms of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement, the players would proceed as usual towards the scheduled starts of Spring Training and the April 1st Opening Day.”

It goes without saying that MLB owners – for whom Manfred works – will once again lose millions of dollars without fans in their respective stands. As such, baseball-hungry fans (i.e., all of us) must rely on television coverage – either regionally or nationally – to curb our hunger. Should MLB and the MLBPA be unable to reach a workable agreement for the 2021 season, an ugly labor dispute could ensue – something that nobody needs (or will tolerate) right now. Keep in mind that the current Collective Bargaining Agreement between MLB and the MLBPA expired after the 2021 season.

Now is not the time for either side to get into an ugly labor dispute.

Capisce?

Play Ball!

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