MLB Rejects Players 70-Game Proposal

The proposal carousel continues to spin as Major League Baseball and the Players Union remain unable to come to an agreement.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred rejected the MLBPA’s 70-game season proposal on Thursday. He also made some interesting comments about the player’s proposal regarding the COVID-19 situation.

“Dr. [Anthony] Fauci’s out there telling us that football should [be] playing in a quarantine. The other two sports are playing in a quarantine,” Manfred said, referring to the NBA and NHL planning to play in Orlando. “Our guys want nothing to do with that. No. 2, Fauci says we shouldn’t be playing in October, and their proposal contemplates lengthening the season.”

“We told them we’re not playing doubleheaders,” Manfred said. “Our public health guys tell us you should not put people together for that number of hours in the day. It’s not safe. But they just keep ignoring those things.”

So, since Manfred told ESPN’s Mike Greenberg that he wasn’t confident there would be a 2020 MLB season, we’ve had a proposal from each side.

MLB’s proposal included: 60 games in 70 days, season starting July 19/20, full prorated salary expanded playoffs in 2020 and 2021, and waiving of any potential grievance, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. The MLBPA countered with: a 70-game season from July 19-Sept. 30, $50 million in playoff bonuses, a 50/50 split of new postseason TV revenues in 2021, forgiveness of salary advance for Tier I-III players, universal DH and mutual waiver of grievance, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

All in all, the two sides appear to be inching closer to a deal. However, Rosenthal writes with Evan Drellich that even a 65-game season might not work for players and owners. So, MLB and the MLBPA might still be far apart.

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