In case you had any doubts that Major League Baseball is heading for a lockout on December 1, commissioner Rob Manfred basically removed them today.
On December 1, the current MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement expires. If no deal is reached between the owners and players before then, players are officially “locked out.”
On Thursday, Manfred told reporters that “an offseason lockout that moves the process forward is different than a labor dispute that costs games.” By this point, he’s making it obvious that a work stoppage is coming.
Manfred may be feeling internally that the 2022 season will start on time, but even so, this quote isn’t doing him any favors. It further indicates he’s on the side of the owners and gives off the impression that he doesn’t care all that much about the overall health of baseball.
Not surprisingly, the commissioner is getting ripped for his remarks by the MLB community.
Manfred reportedly also said they are focused on getting deal done, but this statement certainly seems to trump the other. Talking this way only further indicates MLB will shut down Dec. 1. Once lockout starts, people can get very entrenched in “winning” & then stuff gets ugly https://t.co/Cz5QV83ytC
— Evan Grant (@Evan_P_Grant) November 18, 2021
So, I should cancel the winter meetings hotel? https://t.co/2DXRjNQNjT
— Ben Frederickson (@Ben_Fred) November 18, 2021
So when the players strike it’s a “labor dispute” but the owners can force a lockout and it’s OK. Manfred is worse than your sport’s commissioner. https://t.co/pMqG0FBYm2
— Mike Luciano (@ByMikeLuciano) November 18, 2021
December is going to be fun! https://t.co/hwsrKmCAPa
— S. Rose Gotsulias (they/them) (@StaceGots) November 18, 2021
LMFAO come on https://t.co/JgTQaVXAuT
— Arif Hasan, hates turkey ❌🦃 (@ArifHasanNFL) November 18, 2021
Me, the baseball enjoyer: This sounds bad
Me, the prospect writer: Well there won’t be any player movement so no Futures Guide edits. https://t.co/g0xt50o41m
— Jeffrey Paternostro (@jeffpaternostro) November 18, 2021
“You can’t strike, we’re locking you out!” is the same thing as “You can’t fire me, I quit!”
— Nick Stellini (@StelliniTweets) November 18, 2021
This is going to be a long and painful offseason https://t.co/XEJBJjZwbj
— Reviewing the Brew (@ReviewngTheBrew) November 18, 2021
but what if it ultimately costs the sport games? https://t.co/Nlk2FcrYtJ
— Michael Baron (@michaelgbaron) November 18, 2021
Tell me there’s going to be a lockout without telling me there’s going to be a lockout. https://t.co/83qyzPrzXA
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) November 18, 2021
It will also eliminate a huge part of the sport: hot stove/free agency season for potentially 2 months or more https://t.co/2v72dUqNP8
— Pat Ragazzo (@ragazzoreport) November 18, 2021
If a lockout comes to fruition as expected, it could get very acrimonious. There’s not a lot of love lost between the MLBPA and ownership right now.
Hopefully, the upcoming regular season is not affected. If it is, Manfred will wind up regretting his comments today.
The post MLB World Reacts To What Rob Manfred Said Thursday appeared first on The Spun.
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