New York – The lockout is over and baseball is back where it belongs in the ballparks, on TV screens, heard on the radio, and streaming apps. But the second longest shutdown of the game should not have been prolonged and surrounded with lengthy negotiations, barbs of insults, and threats of a 2022 season put in jeopardy.
But the owners and players had their war over finances that were wrapped around with so many numbers which caused a loyal base of fans to say, I don’t care and all we want is baseball. Heck an astute person that deals with finances on a daily basis could not understand the specifics and logistics of this dispute.
Because this went beyond the numbers of dollars and cents. It was that battle of millionaires versus billionaires. We did not care because all we asked for was baseball and a normal season from April to late October..
Who was right or wrong? The owners? Players? That really doesn’t matter. because both did everything they could to turn what could have been a positive into a negative. It caused a disruption of the game and major backlash from the fans.
So Opening Day is April 7, fitting that the Yankees and Red Sox will resume their historic rivalry at Fenway Park up in Boston. Other teams will take the field and a remainder the next day. Bygones will be bygones and I said, many times, no matter how bitter they are, and they have every reason to justify their anger, Fenway Park and the ballparks will fill evetually fill to capacity.
Overall, fans have short memories in regard to labor disputes with their national pastime. They express how the game has changed. It’s all about the profits and players with lucrative contracts asking for more, though a sizable issue of this lockout was a powerful MLBPA (Major League Baseball Players Association) claim about a disparity with finances and that word of competitive balance.
There was an issue of luxury taxes, minimal salaries, and so much more including an international draft pool of players that caused a deadlock which delayed another hopeful agreement
So we are returning to normal. Well sort of, with a delayed Opening Day, a brief extension of the season to makeup for games lost. A frenzy of trades and free agent signings are expected to begin in the next few days as teams organize their rosters with their salary structures and finances in place.
Again,all the false hopes of a conclusive and new collective bargaining agreement made for award winning reality TV. Twitter and other social media outlets were the source of false or true hopes. Back-and -forth with proposals and counter offers, instead of hearing about a player’s transaction, crack of the bat, or sound of the ball hitting a ball out of the ballpark.
Honestly, it got to the point of no return. I was content about accepting a long delay of a new baseball season. I was prepared for alternatives and writing more about boxing, MLS soccer, “March Madness” and NCAA Tournament. I was prepared to sit this one out..
Recall only a few years ago, 2020, there was a pandemic and truncated 60 game season, then, though, circumstances were different with health and safety protocols as the word COVID dominated and changed our lifestyles.
I returned to the ballpark more last year and heard about this labor dispute coming between the players and owners, however there was plenty of time to prevent a shutdown of the game that is more concerned about finances, Instead of improving the game for a fan base it was more about the finances of millionaires and billionaires.
Earlier this week as another bargaining session came down to the wire, I was not optimistic with reports saying an agreement was close. I wasn’t wrong with another false alarm. I said, as you probably did, enough of the false sense of hope. I said there were more and more significant issues of concern with the continued Russian invasion of Ukraine images and senseless deaths of adults and children that continue.
You say, as I do, baseball and a labor dispute that shut down the game for 98 days was not a priority as inflation here has hit a 40-year high. I agree. But the game has always been a diversion from the ugly and recall how the events of September 11, 2001 and baseball healed a grieving nation when the game returned from a brief hiatus.
Baseball, then, was put on hold for a few weeks and the resumption made us feel better.
This was different. It did not have to be the way it was. And as players pack their bags and report to spring training this weekend we can all breathe a sigh of relief.
I am not going into specifics about the numbers and a new labor agreement. You read about an increase in minimum salaries, the competitive tax balance, salary thresholds, expanded playoffs of 12 teams that will increase revenue, and draft lotteries that was a culmination that struck a deal.
The infield shift and pitch clock to speed up the game are some of the issues will be tabled and eventually part of a new agreement that will eventually be implemented. Pre pandemic rules make the game normal again with nine inning double header, and there will be a few of those with makeups of games lost.
Gone is that ridiculous ghost runner at second base for games that go the extra inning route and there is a universal designated hitter that should have been implemented many years ago,
Still the game has numerous issues that need to be addressed and corrected as we move on from this lockout. Not everyone, though, is content because the gridlock is gone about a nasty lockout and that includes many of the wealthy owners and the players.
It came down to both sides backing down. The reality was damage beginning to build and every game scratched meant revenue was lost that means so much with the lucrative regional and national television contracts the owners receive for their empires.
Eventually I will return to the press box and provide coverage with analysis of what is transpiring on the field instead of writing about finances and issues that hinder our national pastime. I am ecstatic about pre pandemic protocols and media returning to the clubhouse.
We can talk again to players and get a better account of what happened on the field because that’s a proper way to report and write about the game. I talked with a few players late Thursday and they were itching to get back on the field.
They said this was a battle for those who will succeed them in the years ahead, and assure they are rewarded with the lucrative contract that 74 percent of MLBPA union members are not granted. On the field a vast majority of youth and Latino players are paving the way to prosperity and success.
But the damage control of this lockout will be a constant reminder the game has to find a way to regain the trust of fans. Yes it’s a matter of time and hopefully the league and players learned from this.
Forget now about the inequities that still exist regarding small market and big market teams because the game will never be played on an even field with the financial structure as is.
Remember, though, baseball is our national pastime and always will be. Labor disputes revolving around millionaires versus billionaires can wait for another day.
Rich Mancuso is a senior writer and columnist with Latinosports.com Comment: Twitetr@Ring786 Facebook,.com/Rich Mancuso
