Although the COVID-19 pandemic continues in the United States, MLB spring training will begin after a little over two weeks. However, Major League Baseball hopes to delay the start of the 2021 season. The league can not do it unilaterally, and from now on the spring training and the opening day are on schedule.
This may change. Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports reports MLB recently proposed framework for a delayed season for 154 games for the MLBPA. Here are the key details from the proposal:
- 154 match season with full pay for players
- Season is delayed by one month and extended by one week
- Extended post-season
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the players’ union is likely to reject MLB’s proposal. A number of players believe it is too late out of season to review the schedule, Rosenthal says. According to Rosenthal, the two parties can revisit the idea of extended playoffs and the universal DH, but the union remains opposed to the idea of extended playoffs.
David Samson broke off the latest MLB / MLBPA negotiations on the latest episode of Nothing Personal with David Samson. Listen below:
The MLBPA recently rejected an offer they would give the universal DH in exchange for an extended post-season. The new 154-match season proposal is essentially the same offer, with just eight fewer games and a delayed start.
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According to the league’s plan, spring training would begin on March 22. according to ESPN’s Buster Olney, and the opening day would be moved back to April 28th. The Wall Street Journal‘s Jared Diamond adds the extended post-season would include 14 teams, not 16 like the 2020 season.
If you postpone the season for a month and extend the season for a week, it indicates that there will be double copies scheduled during the season, even if eight games are cut off from the schedule. Presumably, the universal DH, seven-over double-header slips and a tie-breaking rule for extra innings were included in MLB’s proposal.
MLB’s proposal seems reasonable enough at first glance, although the MLBPA would not find anything nearly as valuable as the extended post-season for the owners. An extended post-season equals ten million in extra revenue to MLB. The union is already entitled to full compensation for 2021. They are not getting much out of this.
As much as it makes sense to postpone the season for health and safety reasons, it comes down to money. MLB wants to play as many matches with fans in the stands as possible, and delaying the season will help do so now that the spread of vaccination has begun. The MLBPA wants full payment regardless of the season length.
The spring training camps are expected to start in mid-February and the game of Cactus League and Grapefruit League will start on 27 February. The opening series for the regular season is scheduled for April 1st.