MLB: Player’s Union right to not make counter proposal

MLB owners had an insulting offer to their players regarding their salaries for the 2020 season. The Union would be right not to counter.

You can’t blame MLB owners for trying.

Everyone is desperate to get back on the field. The owners are losing money with every day that passes. The players are not only losing money, but are missing their chances to burnish Hall of Fame resumes or to improve their standing before free agency. Fans just want the game to return, to the point where ESPN is now airing games from the Korean Baseball Organization to fill that void.

But then came the owner’s proposal regarding pay this season. While those paychecks would obviously be adjusted for the portion of the season played, this went beyond that point. Owners were demanding that the better compensated players take a pay cut, with virtually the only players not impacted being those making the league minimum.

Understandably, the players were upset. According to Jon Heyman, reactions ranged from being disappointed to feeling disrespected. However, that proposal had a reaction, albeit one that the owners likely had not hoped for; the players have united as one, unilaterally rejecting that offer.

Typically, in a case like the discussions between the owners and players, there would be a counter-proposal. That also assumes that the other side is acting in good faith, something that one can seriously question regarding ownership. In fact, the union and players would be better off by not making a counteroffer.

As far as the players are concerned, there was an agreement in place regarding compensation. MLB owners claim that agreement did not cover all bases. Regardless of which side is correct, promising a cut of the revenue when fans may not be in the stands, and cutting salaries further, is a move designed to pressure the players into agreeing because the fans want the game back.

Instead, that offer is an insult. The players are the ones taking the risks, going on the field and having to worry about potentially contracting the virus. They are the ones whose livelihood is on the line. While there may be some give and take, to ask the players to agree to that type of a deal is an insult.

Will there be a 2020 MLB season? That all depends on the owners’ next proposal, because the MLBPA should refuse to counter something so ridiculous it boggles the mind.