JUPITER, Florida (AP) – Major League Baseball said Wednesday that the 2022 season will be shortened if a working agreement is not reached by the end of Monday.
Management confirmed that this was the deadline for a deal that would allow the season to start as scheduled on March 31. Players have not said if they accept this time frame, and there is still a feeling that both sides are waiting for more time pressure to force more major moves on the other.
The MLB announcement came after another day of minor moves. The only new offer the Major League Baseball team made to players on Wednesday was to increase the minimum salary by an additional $10,000 per year.
MLB raised its proposed minimum for this year to $640,000, with the figure rising by $10,000 each additional season for a five-year agreement.
Players requested $775,000 in 2022, with a $30,000 jump each season.
There appears to be little or no movement on the key issue of luxury tax limits and rates, or the size of the players’ bonus pool before arbitration.
On the third consecutive day of haggling, New York Mets player Max Scherzer and Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole participated in the talks.
Free shooting agent Andrew Miller and loyal Yankees Zach Britton also joined the negotiations on the 84th closing day and were alongside the Mets’ Short Stop Francesco Lindor and Jason Castro in Houston. These six are among eight members of the union’s sub-executive committee, which oversees collective bargaining.
Texans player Marcus Simin and Boston player James Paxton, the other two members, were not seen during talks at Roger Dean Stadium, the vacant spring training home of the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals.
Baseball’s strongest agent, Scott Borras, represents Britton, Cole, Paxton, Scherzer and Handsome.
Teams have told the union they will not reduce revenue sharing and will not add new methods for players to accumulate service time, which players have said is needed to prevent teams from hindering players to delay free agency.
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