MLB take on the current 2020 season

Can you imagine the headline that might come if there is no MLB season? It might read like this “Millionaire players and billionaire owners disagree on how to share the money so there will not be a season in 2020”. The truth is always in the middle and the tone is of less value than the substance. No one is at fault here. Each side has validity to their stance. However, it is still about how to split up the money amongst already rich people.

It should also be put in the right context. The context surrounding this matter. The players are coming across very poorly in many cases. They are emotional and do not speak with an audience in mind thus they are sounding like sheltered prima donnas. The basis that they are risking their lives is simply wrong. The basis that they will not play unless they get theirs is just a poor statement as it comes off to the public as crying over money when they make so much anyway. Context is that MLB was headed for a great run of seasons, but they have had issues recently that have soured the public audience. Going back to the strike which happened in August 1994 and carried over until April of 1995, baseball has been working extremely hard to regain popularity. We have seen the Montreal Expos shutter, MLB ran the Washing Nationals at first, there were the huge issues with PEDs, and we just are coming off the Houston Astro cheating scandal. Even with all of that, MLB was positioned well. The older players are now gone, and the youth in the game is extremely talented. The money in the game which just two years ago was causing a rift with the players, saw Bryce Harper and Manny Machado sign $300 million dollar contracts and Mike Trout over $400 million. MLB was headed in the right direction. Starts like Ronald Acuna, Juan Soto, Gleyber Torres, Francisco Lindor, and Matt Chapman are at the forefront of leading the way. All the momentum though could be incinerated rather quickly if this now public negotiation does not end well.

Although the players have already agreed to a percentage basis payout for this season, the relevance to the situation has changed. The opening of the states, which is another topic maybe for anther time and the social distancing rules have created an environment where fans and the revenue they bring, will not be included at least in the beginning. None of this is the fault of either side. However, to make an agreement between the two sides, common ground must be found. MLB has gone out of its way to provide the players with a safety protocol so they will feel there is little to no risk of playing. I do not believe there will be issues there. The players will not be saying that they are risking their lives anymore. This was just the wrong thing to say whether they believed it or not. The risks are way to low for them to have this stance, so safety should become a dead issue. All that is left is the money.

MLB has set a schedule and parameters around limiting travel and costs. It is a for-profit business and should try to make as much as they can. MLB offers to split the revenue 50-50 with players is assumed to be another hit in the pocketbook for the players. They agreed to a percentage of games played payout earlier as the spring training was being canceled, thus if there is an 82 game season, they would receive 50% of their contract value. MLB has never shown its books, so we really don’t know what 50% looks like. The players are in the mindset that they will not make the prorated amount and MLB seems to be suggesting that as well. It means they would have another pay cut to absorb. This is the hurdle we may not get past. It likely depends on just how serious anyone wants to play the game and make anything at all. As stated in the opening, it is hard to imagine that a season will be canceled because the revenue can’t be shared. At some point, they need to see into the future and what the reaction to a canceled season for those reasons imply.

The Astros were getting beaten up every at-bat and everywhere they went during spring training by the public who could not stand what they did. Imagine all 30 teams having to go through an ordeal similar. No there would not be that much hatred for every single team as was shown the Astros, but have seen the public comments? They are in no way ready to support a canceled season. Much like the rest of the real world, teams are having financial difficulty. You have seen retail stores, small businesses, and restaurants close permanently due to the shutdown. I am not thinking MLB would permanently close, but things would change dramatically. What if those big contracts were to go away forever? It is a possibility that the sport would not get the buy-in from the public that it had hence the revenue would not be as strong going forward. MLB has already condensed the minor league teams and systems. Would they go even further in this area to eliminate costs? How much would they have to charge to you to attend a game yet still pay the payers? The 2021 season would be so hard to get ramped up with revenues that the 2020 season is imperative to get ironed out. Let alone the near future of the game past 2021. There is a balance that must be found. This is a business that is presented as a game. Make no mistake, people want to make their money. Also, make no mistake; this could awry quickly with large damaging aftershocks that may hurt the existence of the sport. We talk about major sports to include football, baseball, basketball, and hockey. What if it were reduced to only three? It could happen if the groups of people involved today are not extremely careful. I think both sides need to rethink the future before they act on the today and the right answers would be easier to obtain.