Report: MLB owners, players at odds about start of season
A disagreement between Major League Baseball owners and players over COVID-19 protocols is brewing and could put the start of spring training in question, USA Today reported Tuesday.
On one side are team officials, who want players and team staff to be vaccinated against the virus before reporting to Arizona and Florida training sites -even if that means a delay to the start of the season and fewer games.
On the other side are the players, who want a full 162game slate and their salaries in full, according to the report.
“I don’t see a snowball’s chance in hell that spring training can start with protocols in place,” a National League owner told USA Today on the condition of anonymity. “I think there will be significant pressure for players to get the vaccine first before they go to spring training, and if that has to be moved back to April and play 130 games, so be it.”
The vaccine is being rolled out in limited quantities as production continues, with the most vulnerable — medical professionals and the elderly — among those to receive the first doses. Healthy younger people, such as baseball players, are not a priority group for vaccine distribution.
And players point to the fact they were able to finish a 60-game season and postseason, despite severe outbreaks among two teams and summer spikes in some states, as proof they safely can play a full schedule. They received just one-third of their salaries last year in the reduced season.
Spring training is scheduled to start with pitchers and catchers reporting in
mid-February. The regular season is set to begin on April 1 with all 30 teams in action.
CATCHER MCCANN SIGNS WITH METS >> Free- agent catcher James McCann signed a $40.6 million, fouryear contract with the New York Mets on Tuesday. The 30-year-old McCann was an All-Star with the White Sox in 2019 and this season set career highs in batting average (.289), on-base percentage (.360) and slugging percentage (.536).
McCann hit .273 with 18 home runs and 60 RBIs in 2019. He had seven home runs and 15 RBIs for the White Sox this year in 31 games.
With the White Sox, he played a key role in the development of ace Lucas Giolito and caught the All-Star’s no-hitter in August.
Soccer
QUAKES LOSE HOESEN IN MLS EXPANSION DRAFT >> Earthquakes forward Danny Hoesen was among five players selected by Austin FC during the 2020 MLS expansion draft.
Hoesen, 29, was out of contract and was not tendered a bona fide offer. Hoesen’s selection means
the Earthquakes receive $50,000 in General Allocation Money and be exempt from the 2021 expansion draft.
College football
TOP 5 TEAMS HOLD STEADY IN CFP RANKINGS >> All remained the same at the top of the College Football Playoff rankings released ahead of championship weekend. Alabama ( 100) remains No. 1 ahead of Notre Dame (10- 0), Clemson (9-1) and Ohio State (50). Texas A& M (7-1) holds steady at No. 5.
The order, at least, will change at least in one significant way after Saturday as Clemson and Notre Dame clash for the second time this season, this time in the ACC title game.
The CFP selection committee is slated to announce the final selections on Sunday.
MICHIGAN CANCELS GAME AT NO. 18 IOWA >> An ongoing COVID-19 outbreak at Michigan has forced the Wolverines to cancel their football game at No. 18 Iowa on Saturday. This will be the third straight game canceled. The Wolverines didn’t play Dec. 5 at home against Maryland or last week at No. 3 Ohio
State.
INDIANA-PURDUE RIVALRY GAME OFF >> Indiana and Purdue have squared off on the football field every year since 1920. Now, their rivalry game for the Old Oaken Bucket has been canceled for the second time in two weeks — and the third time this season. Athletic directors Scott Dolson and Mike Bobinski said Friday’s game had been scrapped because of continuing concerns over COVID-19.
FRISCO BOWL CANCELED >> The first bowl game scheduled to played this season has been canceled.
The Frisco Bowl scheduled for Saturday was called off because SMU is having COVID-19 issues. The Mustangs were scheduled to play Texas-San Antonio in Frisco, Texas. UTSA will instead play in the First Responder Bowl at Gerald J. Ford Stadium on SMU’s campus outside Dallas on Dec. 26.
Extreme sports
WINTER X GAMES ON, BUT FANS NOT PART OF THE SHOW >> The 2021 version of the Winter X Games promises lots of flipping and spinning, not so much singing and dancing.
ESPN announced that the first major action-sports contest since the COVID-19 pandemic started forcing major cancellations will take place during its usual slot in Aspen, Colorado, from Jan. 29-31, but will be closed off to fans.
Among those expected to compete are Chloe Kim, Mark McMorris and David Wise, all of whom have missed several events since cancellations scrubbed the late-winter calendar. The event has mushroomed over the decades into a festivallike gathering that draws more than 110,000 fans to Aspen.