Owners and the players’ union have been unable to figure out how to share the financial cost of playing a season without fans in attendance
Information from The Wall Street Journal
PHOTO: TROY TAORMINA/REUTERS
Major League Baseball’s effort to peacefully negotiate with its players a return from the coronavirus shutdown has ground to a halt. Barring a last-minute reversal, it appears that fans will be left with a short, league-imposed 2020 season and a bitter labor dispute that could consume the sport for years.
The two sides have been unable to solve a fundamental question: How to share the financial cost of playing a season without the revenues from fans in attendance because of the pandemic.
The Major League Baseball Players Association on Saturday said it would no longer discuss a restart plan after rejecting a proposal that called for them making no more than 37% of their salaries for 44% of a typical season. The players have said they would only return to play if their salaries are prorated based on the number of games played, as called for in a deal the union struck with the league in March.
The union’s move puts the onus on MLB commissioner Rob Manfred to foist a season on the players, a power he holds under the March agreement. The owners previously indicated that they would opt for about 50 games, in order to preserve cash without spectators and move quickly to the lucrative postseason.
