Jupiter, Florida – Major League Baseball has extended its deadline to reach a labor agreement until Tuesday at 5pm to save the opening day as scheduled for March 31st.
Blocked players and team owners took part in a series of intense negotiations that began on Monday and lasted until the early hours of Tuesday morning as the parties tried to pave the way for a deal. They stopped talking overnight around 2:30 a.m. and were scheduled to resume at 11 p.m.
When the blockade reached its 90th day, players and owners advanced to an agreement, but stayed away on key issues.
Commissioner Rob Manfred has met with the union twice, once more than before since the closure began on December 2nd.
After months of talks, the sides switched to a possible deal.
“We’re working on that,” Manfred said around 6 p.m. after his second session of the day with the union.
Deputy Commissioner Dan Halem and Executive Vice President Morgan Sword were key figures in the meetings. Some of the 13 sessions lasted a few minutes and also included Senior Vice President Pat Houlihan.
Negotiations began on a ninth day in a row after the league and the players met only six times over the basic economy during the first 2-1 / 2 months of the closing. Their positions have been exposed to each other in detail, both agreeing to channel more money to young players, but entering the day far away in many economic terms.
Manfred initially said an agreement had to be reached on Monday to hold four weeks of spring training ahead of a 162-match schedule. Without setting an exact time for the deadline, the trading sessions were extended beyond 2 in the morning.
The union has not said if it agrees with the deadline, and baseball has shortened spring training to just three weeks in the past.
Emotions warmed up as the sides pressed against each other. Philadelphia star Bryce Harper posted an altered Instagram photo to show her in a Japanese baseball uniform with the words, “Yomiuri Giants you up? You have time to kill.”
Yankees pitcher Jameson Taillon, who attended the negotiations last week, tweeted: “Players are used to their ‘threats’. Owners’ actions have made it clear over time that they have a set of games where they still make a profit / make money on TV. They don’t want to play. It’s sad that these are the guys driving the direction and the “future” of our amazing sport. “
Teams arrived Monday at 10 a.m., three hours earlier than the previous days, at Roger Dean Stadium, the vacant spring training home of the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals.
Mets pitcher Max Scherzer and free agent reliever Andrew Miler were the only players available. Halem, Sword and Colorado Rockies CEO Dick Monfort also took part in the talks.
According to a study by The Associated Press, players would lose $ 20.5 million in salary for each day of the season being canceled, and all 30 teams would lose large sums that are harder to determine.
Spring training games should have started on Saturday, but the ninth baseball break, and the first since 1995, has already caused the exhibitions to be canceled until March 7.
The most controversial proposals in dispute are luxury thresholds and tax rates, the size of a new bonus for pre-refereeing players, minimum wages, eligibility for wage arbitration, and the union’s willingness to change. the club’s revenue sharing formula.
In addition, MLB has linked the elimination of direct free agent compensation to players who accept higher luxury tax rates and still wants to extend the playoffs to 14 teams instead of union preference by 12. MLB has also maintained his proposal for an international amateur. draft on the table.
Not since August 30, 2002, has MLB been so close to losing regular-season games due to labor disputes. The union was due to strike at 3:20 p.m., but approximately 25 consecutive hours of meetings and caucuses culminated in an agreement at 11:45 p.m.
Negotiations have not had that kind of frequency this year, but they have gained momentum since talks moved from New York to Florida last week.
MLB has offered to raise the luxury tax threshold from $ 210 million last season to $ 220 million this year. Teams also want higher tax rates, which according to the union would tend to act as a wage cap.
Players have asked for a $ 245 million threshold this year, which will rise to $ 273 million last season.
The union wants to extend the arbitration to include 35% higher for service time of players with at least two major league service seasons and less than three, more than the 22% cut established since 2013.
The union has proposed that the pre-arbitration package have $ 115 million distributed to 150 players, and management wants 25 million to be distributed among 30.
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