After what seemed to be progress, negotiations on a collective bargaining agreement took a step backward on Saturday, writes Tom Verducci. Talks will resume Sunday afternoon, per a source
The owners made a counterproposal that left the players so angry that, according to the Associated Press, they were deciding whether to continue negotiations Sunday or go home. Negotiations are scheduled to resume Sunday at 1 p.m., according to a source.via progress on a draft lottery. But that ended Saturday when owners tied the draft lottery to a suite of proposals in their counter.
The rule-change proposal marked the first substantial instance in which the on-field product came up for negotiation. Under existing protocols, MLB can make rules changes such as the adoption of a pitch clock or a ban on defensive shifts only with the union’s consent or by implementation with one year of notice. The owners proposed to shrink that gap to 45 days. To do so, they proposed placing two player representatives on a committee with six management officials and one umpire.
The events Saturday could only be classified as a step back—with a deadline of Monday to save Opening Day as scheduled as set by commissioner Rob Manfred. Every core economic proposal that came up caused friction. Other contentious issues were not addressed, such as the minimum salary and a bonus pool for pre-arbitration players.