The Atlanta Braves will have to wait a little longer than anticipated to begin their World Series title defense, but how much longer?
After the owners and MLBPA failed to reach an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement by the Monday deadline, the answer, for now, is until at least April 7th. Commissioner Rob Manfred announced the cancellation of the first two series of the season, meaning that the Braves will lose a four-game series with the Marlins in Miami and a two-game set with Mets in Queens.
This means that the Braves home opener vs. the Reds on April 7th remains intact…for now.
More games will likely be axed if the two sides fail to reach an agreement soon, and as of now, another round of negotiations has not been announced. Earlier this week, multiple MLB insiders reported that the owners were willing to cancel “a month’s worth of games.”
The owners made a final proposal before Monday’s deadline, but it was quickly rejected by the MLBPA. The parties remain far apart on issues such as the competitive balance tax, the pre-arbitration bonus pool, and several other key sticking points. During his press conference, Manfred, who was heavily criticized for laughing and working on his golf swing Monday, seemingly left the ball in the MLBPA’s court to initiate the next round of talks.
“We made a proposal this afternoon. I believe, without exception, every topic, we have made the last proposal. Every single issue in the basic agreement, we have made the last proposal. You draw your own conclusion as to oughta go next,” the commissioner said.
At the end of the day, fans are tired of being asked to take sides in this ongoing squabble between the owners and the players and just want baseball back, especially here in Atlanta.
