There suddenly appears to be a glimmer of hope that MLB’s lockout is almost over.
According to Audacy’s MLB Insider Jon Heyman, despite the gloomy outlook and negative surrounding the labor negotiations, one person involved in the talks believes that the two sides are “withing striking distance” and a deal could be done by Monday night.
Heyman noted that the luxury tax remains a “sticky issue” but a threshold of $225-$230 million should get a deal done.
Yankees reliever Zack Britton, a player rep for the MLBPA, disputed this characterization, however, while Heyman noted that not everyone feels the way of his source.
If a deal is indeed agreed upon by Monday night, it is possible that no regular-season games will be lost.
Major League Baseball has held firm that if there is not a deal by Monday, regular season games will begin to be canceled and players would not be compensated for any games that are missed.
The two sides have been negotiating all week in Florida, reportedly making incremental progress.
On Saturday, the players were reportedly “very upset” following their latest proposal, which the owners did not love, and that a deal was not imminent, per Heyman.
It certainly seems like a lot of ground must still be covered over the next two days to save the start of the season, even if there is a sense of optimism growing from one source.
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