MLB’S economic proposal disappointing, players say
NEW YORK — A rookie at the major league minimum would keep about 47 percent of his original salary this year while multimillionaire stars Mike Trout and Gerrit Cole would lose more than 77 percent under a sliding-scale proposal by big league teams that players found “extremely disappointing.”
Major League Baseball made the proposal to the players’ union on Tuesday during a digital meeting rather than the 50-50 revenue-sharing plan that owners initially approved for their negotiators on May 11, several people familiar with the plan told The Associated Press. The people spoke on condition of anonymity because details were not announced.
In addition to its reaction on the economics, the union said “the sides also remain far apart on health and safety protocols” aimed at starting the pandemic-delayed season around the Fourth of July. The sides have been grappling with how to aim for an opening day originally scheduled for March 26 but pushed back because of the new coronavirus.
“We made a proposal to the union that is completely consistent with the economic realities facing our sport,” MLB said in a statement.
Players agreed March 26 to a deal in which they would receive prorated shares of their salaries based on what percentage of each team’s 162-game schedule is played. In exchange, players were guaranteed that if there are no games they would get service time matching what they accrued in 2019.
MLB has proposed an 82-game schedule and says the March 26 deal would result in huge losses because it did not necessarily account for a season with no fans in ballparks.
Under the plan, a player would keep 90percent of his salary up to the $563,500 big league minimum, including those with lower salaries while on optional or outright assignments in the minor leagues, according to information obtained by the
AP.
The amount would decrease to 72.5 percent from $563,501 though $1 million, to 50 percent from $1,000,001 through $5 million, to 40 percent from $5,000,001 through $10 million, to 30 percent from $10,000,0001 through $20 million and to 20 percent from $20,000,001 and up.
Each player’s figure then would be prorated by the 82/162 formula agreed, causing a loss of 49.4 percent.
There would be an additional $200 million in postseason bonus money — $25 million for the Division Series, $50 million for the League Championship Series and $125 million for the World Series — that would be given in proportion to the difference in money lost between this proposal and the March agreement.