After the months long labor dispute between the owners and players, MLB will finally decide what baseball will look like this summer.
On Monday morning, Radio.com Sports Insider Jon Heyman joined Angelo Cataldi and the Morning Team and confirmed what the 2020 season has in store.
"The likely scenario is an imposed, mandated 50-some-odd game season."
Heyman said that if any other deal is going to get done, it will start with the owners.
"Really, it’s up to the owners," Heyman said. "They need to do what's in the best interest for baseball. It's on them."
"I'm still holding out small hope that they will actually continue the negotiations. I don’t see that happening. I was on the phone yesterday with a few owners and sources, and none of them really seem to have an appetite for it. I think a season will be imposed, mandated. The players will file that grievance and they are ready to do it. They wanted the prorated pay, and they are going to get it but at fewer games. At 54 games, they only get 1/3 of their salary. I don't see this as a great thing for the players even though they are winning this negotiation."
Winning the negotiation at this point seems unlikely for both sides. For the players, standing their ground and filing a grievance will have implications during the 2021 CBA negotiations. In the short term, the proposed expanded playoffs are off the table for now, something both fans and players were anticipating.
"The players have been adamant that if they are mandated 50 games or some number they did not sign off on, they will not do the expanded playoffs," said Heyman. "I think they are cutting off their nose despite their face. Maybe that's a negotiating tactic or maybe they are just very upset. I think the expanded playoffs helps everybody out and they have always been in favor of them. Now they are against them because of the owners imposing a shorter season on them."
Heyman also mentioned the dissenting opinions on both sides of the negotiations, but noted there was a much larger group voicing concern on the owners' side.
"On the owners side, dissent comes from a couple owners who would rather give up the season entirely. It's not on the side of let's keep negotiating, let's do our best. I have not heard that on the owners side… On the players side, my understanding is it was near unanimous to not counter the last proposal. My understanding is it might have just been one or two [players] that said let's keep negotiating. I have heard that Daniel Murphy seems to be in the middle more than other union leaders."