Players, owners strike out in ongoing MLB labour dispute

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What the heck happened?

It seemed like we were on the verge of a deal between Major League Baseball and the players union on a new collective bargaining agreement and then the clock struck 5 p.m. ET Tuesday. That’s when the carriage turned into a pumpkin, the horses became mice, the footmen became lizards and all their clothes turned into overalls as the players rejected the league’s final offer, prompting MLB to cancel Opening Day.

Oh, and regular-season games – the first two series of the 2022 season – disappeared off the schedule, marking the first time in 27 years that games will be cancelled due to a labour dispute.

Contract negotiations are fluid. They have a pace and energy that is palpable. You can feel when you are closing in on a deal. Most negotiators will say don’t leave without closing the deal when that momentum gets rolling. 

Unfortunately, the negotiations between the MLB Players Association and team owners couldn’t be brought to a conclusion in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The two sides went back to their hotel rooms for a few hours of sleep, but before they would meet again, the negotiating teams reached out to their constituents to provide them with an update. Commissioner Rob Manfred and his team called owners, while the MLBPA scheduled calls with players and agents.

The owners’ team of negotiators arrived at the facility in Jupiter, Fla., Tuesday morning believing they were going to get a deal done. But they quickly felt a change in energy and got the sense something had shifted on the union side. There were reports that some players and agents didn’t like a few of the items that the union caved on during negotiations. 

Remember, the players are coming into the