MLB, union move toward agreement on 60-game season
PHOENIX — Major League Baseball and the players union are moving towards an agreement on a 60-game season starting July 19 with the players receiving their full-pro-rated salaries, according to two high-ranking executives with direct knowledge of the proposal.
They spoke to USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations.
The end of the stalemate was triggered when commissioner Rob Manfred flew to Phoenix on Tuesday night for a one-on-one meeting with union executive director Tony Clark, which Manfred confirmed in a statement Wednesday.
“We left that meeting with a jointly developed framework that we agreed could form the basis of an agreement and subject to conversations with our respective constituents,” Manfred said in the statement.
“I summarized that framework numerous times in the meeting and sent Tony a written summary today. Consistent with our conversations yesterday, I am encouraging the Clubs to move forward and I trust Tony is doing the same.”
The two sides are expected to re-engage in serious discussions Thursday in hopes of reaching a formal deal by Friday.
“I’m very encouraged now,” one veteran player told USA TODAY Sports.
Said another: “I don’t want to get my hopes up, but man, they’re flying now.”
The players, who requested an 89game season in their last proposal, could seek to ask for a longer season if they make a counter-proposal, with the two sides perhaps compromising of 65 to 70 games. The union, however, has yet to determine their next course of action. This is the first time the owners have agree to pay full prorated salaries, a stance the union never wavered during negotiations. In return, the players would consent to the postseason expanded from 10 to 16 teams and agree not to file a grievance.
While Manfred says the “framework” is in place, the MLBPA tweeted Wednesday afternoon that “reports of an agreement are false.”
The meeting came on the heels of the union halting negotiations on Saturday night, with Manfred saying he no longer is confident there will be a 2020 season.
Clark immediately responded in a statement, saying: “Players are disgusted that after Rob Manfred unequivocally told players and fans that there would ‘100%’ be a 2020 season, he has decided to go back on his word and is now threatening to cancel the entire season. …
“This latest threat is just one more indication that Major League Baseball has been negotiating in bad faith since the beginning.”