MLB lockout: What is it? Why is it happening? When is it over?

By Kerry Flynn, CNN

Updated 1730 GMT (0130 HKT) March 5, 2022

An MLB lockout was announced earlier this week.

(CNN)Major League Baseball's biggest stars and newest faces should be at their respective spring training camps in Florida and Arizona preparing for Opening Day on March 31. Instead, MLB ownership announced on Tuesday that it will begin canceling regular season games due to a self-inflicted lockout for the first time in 27 years.

«We worked hard to avoid an outcome that's bad for our fans, bad for our players and bad for our clubs. Our failure to reach an agreement was not due to a lack of effort by either party,» MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said Tuesday following the announcement. But what is a lockout? Why is it happening? And how long could this go on?What is a lockout?It is important to note that a lockout is not the same as a strike. To be considered a strike, the players would have to impose the work stoppage; but in this case, the ownership group is the party responsible for refusing to permit the league from operating without reaching a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) — the governing document between the owners and the players.Read MoreAs it's likely that players would choose to strike without a CBA regardless of ownership's decision, ownership can utilize a lockout as a way of gaining leverage by controlling the timing of negotiations. As MLB Players Association (MLBPA) executive Tony Clark said: «A lockout is the ultimate economic weapon. In a $10 billion dollar industry, the owners have decided to use this weapon against the greatest asset they have: the players.»Without a new CBA, not only will games continue to be canceled, but MLB players will also continue to be barred from their team