:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/70414314/1345371389.0.jpg)
Representatives from Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association are planning to meet Monday for just the second time in 54 days. The two sides met virtually last week where the league presented an offer that was viewed negatively by the union. The two sides will meet in person and the union is expected to present a counteroffer to the league’s most recent proposal per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association plan to meet Monday, when the union is expected to present a counteroffer to the league’s proposal last week, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 20, 2022
This would be the second meeting between the sides since MLB locked out players on Dec. 2.
The Athletic’s Evan Drellich reported Thursday that the owners want to test the players and that they are planning to wait out the situation as long as possible to see whether or not the union will fracture under the threat of missed paychecks. After two straight CBA negotiations that in hindsight were viewed as losses for the players, the union has backed themselves into this situation. The players have spent the last several years preparing for this moment and have every incentive to dig in and show their resolve.
However, that could be bad news for anyone hoping that the 2022 season will start on time. Pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report in about a month but that seems unlikely to happen. Real progress isn’t going to be made until there are real consequences and that isn’t going to happen until Opening Day is in jeopardy. Per Drellich’s report, the league knows it will have to give up something, but how much is still up in the air.