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RIP: Major League Baseball in March 2022, MLB Opening Day postponed

By Noah Yingling

ORLANDO, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 10: Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred answers questions during an MLB owner's meeting at the Waldorf Astoria on February 10, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. Manfred addressed the ongoing lockout of players, which owners put in place after the league's collective bargaining agreement ended on December 1, 2021. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 10: Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred answers questions during an MLB owner's meeting at the Waldorf Astoria on February 10, 2022 in Orlando, Florida. Manfred addressed the ongoing lockout of players, which owners put in place after the league's collective bargaining agreement ended on December 1, 2021. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) /
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After getting MLB fans hopes up in the last 24 hours, the MLB owners pulled off a move that seemed very likely to happen prior: the start of the MLB season has been officially postponed as the MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced it in a press conference in Jupiter, Florida, at 5 p.m. (Eastern) on Tuesday as owners and MLBPA are still far apart in negotiations.

As a result, spring training will not start in March and Opening Day will not happen on March 31. A 162-game season will also not happen. As of this publication, the first two series of the year will be canceled but further cancelations could come.

It will result in the first time that MLB games will be canceled due to a labor stoppage since 1995, when 18 games were cut from the season after the MLBPA went on strike in August 1994. That strike wiped out the last 50 games of the 1994 season, the playoffs, the World Series, and most of spring training in 1995.

The MLB season will not start on time in 2022

It has been reported that MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and MLB owners will meet with the MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark and the MLBPA in New York potentially later in the week.

The two sides are far apart in negotiations and, reportedly, here are the three things where they are what they are furthest apart on, per Jeff Passan of ESPN and Evan Drellich of The Athletic.

  • The Competitive Balance Tax (CBT, or commonly known as the luxury tax). This is the percentage that a team is taxed on when they exceed a team payroll of a specific amount. In 2021, teams were taxed if their team payroll exceeded $210 million. The owners were willing to increase this to $220 million in 2022-2024, $224 million in 2025, and $230 in 2026). The MLBPA wanted it to be $238 million in 2022 with an increase of $6 million per season until 2026, when it would increase by $7 million, or $263 million
  • A bonus pool for pre-arbitration eligible players: Owners increased their offer to $30 million in their final offer. In their last offer, MLBPA dropped their proposal down to $85 million with increases of $5 million per season. They originally offered $105 million and the owners offered $10 million
  • Minimum salary for first-year players: The owners’ last offer was at $700,000 and increasing to $740k within the next five years. MLBPA’s last offer had it starting at $725,000 and increasing $25,000 per season for the next five years. The MLB minimum salary in 2021 was $570,500

There are other issues where they have quibbled, including a draft for international players and expanded playoffs, but these are the largest three financial issues.

Next. What could come eventually when the MLB lockout ends. dark

Regardless, MLB will not start the season on time. It’s a sad day for baseball but, despite that, we will have lots of coverage here on Call To The Pen and throughout the FanSided MLB network throughout the ongoing lockout.

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