MLB optimistic about starting season in late June

jpx7 said:
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I'm disappointed in you choosing this meme/gif knowing the brutal spelling error within.
 
Krgrecw said:
Okay. Guess you know more than the people that actually know. You can bet the house on that weekend.
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Might happen as you say, but Tony Clark is still saying the MLBPA has yet to be presented with any sort of formal proposal from MLB. And even once that happens, there's sure to be some hold-up as the two stakeholders sort out the potentially-contentious player-compensation angle (with the union, at least publicly, declaring that such issue has been settled, but with owners reportedly seeking additional concessions from players).

They all may be tentatively planning/hoping for opening of the season to coincide with the inauguration of July, but there's a lot up in the air before that's inscribed in stone.
 
jpx7 said:
Might happen as you say, but Tony Clark is still saying the MLBPA has yet to be presented with any sort of formal proposal from MLB. And even once that happens, there's sure to be some hold-up as the two stakeholders sort out the potentially-contentious player-compensation angle (with the union, at least publicly, declaring that such issue has been settled, but with owners reportedly seeking additional concessions from players).

They all may be tentatively planning/hoping for opening of the season to coincide with the inauguration of July, but there's a lot up in the air before that's inscribed in stone.
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The players already have agreed to prorate their salaries, with union chief Tony Clark telling the Associated Press, “that negotiation is over.” The league does not agree, saying further adjustments would be necessary because in games without fans, the clubs would spend more on salaries than they would earn in revenue. The union disputes that point of view.



Players have agreed. It comes down to will there be fans or not and the revenue fall out from that. They can’t debate that until the last minute and see how the covid lockdowns are going.
 
Krgrecw said:
The players already have agreed to prorate their salaries, with union chief Tony Clark telling the Associated Press, “that negotiation is over.” The league does not agree, saying further adjustments would be necessary because in games without fans, the clubs would spend more on salaries than they would earn in revenue. The union disputes that point of view.

Players have agreed. It comes down to will there be fans or not and the revenue fall out from that. They can’t debate that until the last minute and see how the covid lockdowns are going.
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I think it's a near-certainty that games begin without fans. I think the MLB and MLBPA both know and accept this reality, as well. So, with that in mind, the league is going to try to extract "further adjustments", and the union is going to balk at that suggestion—and I think it'll be contentious enough that it could further delay the start of the season as far as mid-July, given how much time it's going to take to safely restart the institutional engine of baseball, stage a second (if abbreviated) "spring training", and get games going in over two-dozen cities. The bright-side is that both MLB and MLBPA have substantial, material incentives to reach an accord—both in the short-term (TV contracts) and long-term (PR)—but I nonetheless think it's foolish to minimize that additional, non-epidemiological hurdle.
 
Do you guys think the shortened season will impact how long starters stay in the game?
 
jpx7 said:
I think it's a near-certainty that games begin without fans. I think the MLB and MLBPA both know and accept this reality, as well. So, with that in mind, the league is going to try to extract "further adjustments", and the union is going to balk at that suggestion—and I think it'll be contentious enough that it could further delay the start of the season as far as mid-July, given how much time it's going to take to safely restart the institutional engine of baseball, stage a second (if abbreviated) "spring training", and get games going in over two-dozen cities. The bright-side is that both MLB and MLBPA have substantial, material incentives to reach an accord—both in the short-term (TV contracts) and long-term (PR)—but I nonetheless think it's foolish to minimize that additional, non-epidemiological hurdle.
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Just to add a little actual reporting to this:

There’s also, of course, the matter of economics. It’s been well documented at this point that the league’s owners will push for further reduction in player salary now that it’s clear fans won’t be in attendance for at least the early portion of the season (quite likely longer than that). Negotiations on that front had not formally begun as of yesterday, Newsday’s David Lennon reports. Presumably, the league’s plan with regard to player salary will be included in whatever proposal is produced, but as Joel Sherman of the New York Post wrote last night, it’s unlikely that the MLBPA will simply agree to whatever scale is initially suggested. [...] Many fans have grown weary of conditional updates and the lack of a clear plan to proceed, but any decisions made will continue to be subject to abrupt change. That sentiment is surely at the root of the league’s recent pushback against the June 10 Spring Training and July 1 opener dates that Trevor Plouffe relayed on Twitter after hearing from friends on active rosters.
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thethe said:
Do you guys think the shortened season will impact how long starters stay in the game?
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Short answer: yes.

Longer answer: given some of the roster and rule changes likely to accompany any resumption of baseball (the same MLBTR piece I linked above notes "that some executives believe active rosters could carry as many as 30 players, while teams will more broadly have a pool of about 50 players apiece available to them"; I also wouldn't be surprised to see the DH introduced to the NL), the fact of an abbreviated second "spring training", and the likelihood of a compressed schedule (with more double-headers), I think it's quite likely we see a corollary use of more openers, piggybacking, et cetera for pitching staffs.
 
I think the hardest thing for restarting the season is what happens when the first player gets the virus? Do teams get penalized for having sick players? Does the league shut down? Does it matter if the person that gets the virus is Bryce Harper or Charlie Culberson? All valid questions for restarting the league, as it’s bound to happen.
 
jpx7 said:
Short answer: yes.

Longer answer: given some of the roster and rule changes likely to accompany any resumption of baseball (the same MLBTR piece I linked above notes "that some executives believe active rosters could carry as many as 30 players, while teams will more broadly have a pool of about 50 players apiece available to them"; I also wouldn't be surprised to see the DH introduced to the NL), the fact of an abbreviated second "spring training", and the likelihood of a compressed schedule (with more double-headers), I think it's quite likely we see a corollary use of more openers, piggybacking, et cetera for pitching staffs.
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That would add an extra element of intrigue for the 2020 season which is fitting based on everything else that has happened this year.
 
jpx7 said:
Short answer: yes.

Longer answer: given some of the roster and rule changes likely to accompany any resumption of baseball (the same MLBTR piece I linked above notes "that some executives believe active rosters could carry as many as 30 players, while teams will more broadly have a pool of about 50 players apiece available to them"; I also wouldn't be surprised to see the DH introduced to the NL), the fact of an abbreviated second "spring training", and the likelihood of a compressed schedule (with more double-headers), I think it's quite likely we see a corollary use of more openers, piggybacking, et cetera for pitching staffs.
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This is where the Braves depth really comes into play...Felix Hernandez was having a great spring training and would have won a rotation spot. Cole Hamels was hurt and not going to play for a while....Now with Hamels healthy, you will likely see a rotation of Soroka/Hamels/Fried/Folty/Hernandez with guys like Wright, Newk, Touki, Wilson etc piggybacking on them.....

Main starter goes 3-4 innings, second guy gets us to the 7th, and turn over to the main pen
 
bravesfanforlife88 said:
This is where the Braves depth really comes into play...Felix Hernandez was having a great spring training and would have won a rotation spot. Cole Hamels was hurt and not going to play for a while....Now with Hamels healthy, you will likely see a rotation of Soroka/Hamels/Fried/Folty/Hernandez with guys like Wright, Newk, Touki, Wilson etc piggybacking on them.....

Main starter goes 3-4 innings, second guy gets us to the 7th, and turn over to the main pen
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If it happens, it's going to be an interesting season, from a norms & strategies standpoint—not just in the immediate, abbreviated 2020 iteration, but for the things it might allow the league and teams to "test out" for future seasons, CBA changes, et cetera. And I think most of those possibilities are more fascinating than troubling (unlike potential player-safety and player-compensation issues, which I think promise to be more troubling than fascinating).

On the other hand, the recent news re the 2020 Draft is pretty much all troubling, without any element of fascination: as detailed in the today's MLBTR reporting regarding the five-round imposition by the league, it seems the pandemic is giving cover to MLB to more ruthlessly pursue the two-pronged goal of reducing the number of minor-league teams and reducing the number of rounds (and overall prospect expenditure) occasioned by the draft (even as the draft remains the most cost-effective avenue to acquiring surplus value).

But even setting aside the ramifications for future years (which will almost certainly have drafts much longer than five rounds, even if less than forty), the proposed $20k per UFDA free-for-all seems decidedly bad both for amateur players and competitive parity amongst teams. While the complicated and problematic incentive structure it introduces for the former is pretty self-evident, the effects re the latter are even more complicated, as well as extremely murky. It may end up helping a team like the Braves this year, lucky to both reside in a region well-stocked with players and enjoy a good measure of popularity, especially within their region; but I think it may stand to help teams like the Yankees (popularity; resources) and Dodgers (popularity; resources; fruitful home region for amateur baseball) even more.
 
Seems like the next hurdle to starting the season is MLB approaching players and asking them to forgo some of this salary for the season. That’s going to be an interesting ask. Most people in the workforce are facing (or have already taken) payouts or been furloughed or laid off, so I can’t wait to see what is asked of these multi-millionaires and the whining that will accompany it.
 
bravesfanforlife88 said:
This is where the Braves depth really comes into play...Felix Hernandez was having a great spring training and would have won a rotation spot. Cole Hamels was hurt and not going to play for a while....Now with Hamels healthy, you will likely see a rotation of Soroka/Hamels/Fried/Folty/Hernandez with guys like Wright, Newk, Touki, Wilson etc piggybacking on them.....

Main starter goes 3-4 innings, second guy gets us to the 7th, and turn over to the main pen
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I dont think it'll be like that but with a shortened season, say 100 games, probably not gonna see many/any SP's going for CG's. The virus does help us alot with Hamels most likely being ready though.
 
Heyward said:
I dont think it'll be like that but with a shortened season, say 100 games, probably not gonna see many/any SP's going for CG's. The virus does help us alot with Hamels most likely being ready though.
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Based on the current idea of starting spring training around june 10th, pitchers may not have enough starts to fully stretch out.
 
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