MLB makes slight moves toward players as negotiations resume, opening day nearing

Baseball negotiations resumed with renewed intensity Monday in an effort to salvage opening day, and Major League Baseball made slight moves toward locked-out players.

With perhaps a week left to salvage opening day, union head Tony Clark attended negotiations for the first time since the MLB lockout began, accompanied by New York Mets stars Max Scherzer and Francisco Lindor.

MLB increased its offer of a bonus pool for pre-arbitration players by $5 million US to $20 million, a fraction of the $115 million the union has asked for.

Clubs also increased their proposal for a lottery for the amateur draft from the top three picks to the top four. Players have asked for the top eight.

Both sides met at least twice, with a lengthy break for caucuses in-between. They talked into the early evening, their longest time together in one place since the lockout began.

Talks will resume at 1 p.m. Tuesday.

The Cardinals' Paul Goldschmidt, the Yankees' Jameson Taillon, the Reds' Sonny Gray, the Royals' Whit Merrifield, the Twins' Taylor Rogers, the Brewers' Brent Suter and the Mets' Brandon Nimmo also were among the players at this latest bargaining session at Roger Dean Stadium, the vacant spring training home of St. Louis and the Miami Marlins.

Clark and the players conferred with Bruce Meyer, the union's chief negotiator, in the right field parking lot before entering the ballpark.

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Colorado Rockies CEO Dick Monfort, chairman of the owners' labour policy committee, was on hand along with San Diego Padres vice chairman Ron Fowler, the immediate past chair of the committee. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred was not present, and the MLB delegation was headed by Deputy Commissioner Dan Halem, the