RVing baseball fans, your annual spring pilgrimage to Arizona or Florida for pro baseball’s Spring Training was turned into just another trip to the two sunny states yesterday.
Talks between Major League Baseball and the Player’s Union failed to reach agreement on a new collective bargaining contract by Monday’s deadline. So, MLB decided to continue its lockout of players and delayed the start of the 2022 regular season.
The Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) unanimously agreed not to accept MLB’s final proposal by the league’s 5 p.m. deadline. There are many issues at play between the two sides. You can read all of the details here.
This is the first time in 27 years that baseball has had to scrap any regular season games due to a labor dispute. A total of 91 games were erased from the regular season schedule Monday. That leaves each team with at most 156 games out of the originally scheduled 162 games. There haven’t been any plans announced for more negotiations, and players won’t be paid for any missed games.
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I’m a baseball fan but I’ve grown increasingly frustrated with professional sports and how many athletes have taken to giving us their political opinions. I wish they would just play the game. Now the lockout has delayed, maybe canceled, major league baseball for the season. I’m going to get my fill watching Minor League Baseball which isn’t affected by the lockout. I’ve been a fan of MiLB for the last few years since my son started working in the industry. It’s really good baseball! So if you’re like me and you want to see baseball this year watch or attend some minor league games.
Tom, Don’t forget college baseball. Many players forego minor league ball for 3 or 4 years of college education plus baseball on par with Double A or Triple A competition. The new rules regarding using an amateur college player’s likeness in advertising will only help attract more and better players. I find the Regional, Super Regional and College World Series games to be a load of fun and exciting. It’s always a treat to see the son of a former MLB star show up in some school’s lineup. I’d rather be in Clearwater or Winter Haven for Spring Training, but I’ll tow to Gainesville, Tallahassee, Athens or Columbia for SEC or ACC games.