Play Ball! After months of idiocy, schedule is in place & camps open July 1st

PanthersPens62

Coach Nerd
Mar 7, 2009
21,206
3,635
Mike's Wheel Barrell
I understand completely the view that MLB players can afford to sit at home and ride this out, and therefore shouldn't be haggling over millions, etc, etc.

However, the same "greedy players" argument applies to the greedy owners, tenfold or more.

The players have no means of recovering their losses, the owners do. The owners made $10.5 billion in 2019, a profit of $1.5 billion. So losing 40% of their revenues without fans ($4.2 billion), is money they could make back within three years at a $1.5 billion profit margin.

It's also worth noting that the owners made record revenues, record profits in 2019... Revenues were up $400 million, but attendance actually WENT DOWN in 2019, costing about $20 million in gate receipts. The owners are always fine, and the value of franchises go up.


If the players take a SECOND paycut after agreeing to the pro-rated cut, they have no means of getting that money back over their careers. In fact, next year's free agent spending is going to go way down because teams have lost revenue in 2020 and won't spend as much to make their team better. This is going to cost the union a lot of money going forward.

And it's MLB's problem of losing fans to other sports, and missing an opportunity to create new fans by coming back when no one has any content to watch. They may have already missed that chance.
I totally understand & again I really do think both sides are at fault. My issue is more with players like Snell, who really need to be careful how they express how they feel when many of their fans are hourly workers who may likely have been either forced to take a paycut themselves, furloughed indefinitely, or outright been laid off & may be waiting in food lines for hours on end on a weekly basis.
 

KevFu

Registered User
May 22, 2009
9,007
3,239
Phoenix from Rochester via New Orleans
Yes, Snell articulated himself in a way that was very, rhymes with flea-bag.

But he wasn't wrong. Quarantining away from his family would be OT, Playing un-quarantined in a pandemic would be hazard pay. And MLB offered two paycuts, pro-rated salary AND a reduction on top of that.

Baseball franchises are going to be lucrative as usual again in the next year or two. The owners can make all the lost revenue back. The players can't make lost wages back.
 

NJDevs26

Once upon a time...
Mar 21, 2007
67,116
31,150
LOL what a clown show. Wake me when either side proposes something that’s less than 100% in their favor. 82 games is too logical apparently, the owners want 50 cause...money. The players want 110 because...money. Ridiculous.
 
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IU Hawks fan

They call me IU
Dec 30, 2008
28,516
2,813
NW Burbs
Think we're going to eventually see the agreed upon deal be something along the lines of the:
* 114 games played
* Salary is prorated, so they get 70.3%
* 40.3% paid as salary this season
* Remaining 30% given in 3 payouts in Nov '21, '22, '23

Owners get cash relief by only paying for 65 games, players get their full pro-rated deals. Everyone wins.
 

Quid Pro Clowe

Registered User
Dec 28, 2008
52,294
9,161
530
You are talking apples & oranges. I understand the concept & I agree both sides are at fault. First off, I already had my hours cut by 20%. I am happy to still be employed. Greg Cote of the Miami Herald had a great article today explaining why both sides are at fault. He used the Mike Trout example.....Trout would make $6 million instead of $19 million, or $70,000 per game, Excuse me if that garners no sympathy from an hourly worker such as myself. Now I do feel bad for the minor leaguers this affects.
Apples and oranges is comparing a typical hourly wage job to the ability to play mlb baseball. The players get big money because big money is involved in the sport. Just because they make a lot compared to average people doesn't mean they should give an unfair share back to the already ultra-wealthy owners.

And there are a shit ton of jobs unfilled in my area because people are making more on unemployment with the extra $600. Work is out there if people really want it.
 

BLONG7

Registered User
Oct 30, 2002
35,619
21,954
Nova Scotia
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Shut the entire season down, it's not safe for players or fans. NO one gets any $$$ and then maybe they will ALL realize they are not essential at all. Come out for next season with the entire season ready to go and better appreciation for everything and everyone involved.
 

Marc the Habs Fan

Moderator
Nov 30, 2002
98,347
10,386
Longueuil


One day after Major League Baseball said it was rejecting the Players Association’s 114-game proposal for the 2020 season and would not make a counteroffer, the players doubled down on their position: They will not take a second reduction in pay.

 

SJSharksfan39

Registered User
Oct 11, 2008
27,290
5,376
San Jose, CA
I just heard the update that the players are standing firm. I’m about 15% sure there will be a season this year, which is pretty much not likely. It’s incredible that at a time this country needs the national pastime, they are squabbling over money, mainly the owners. Looks like I might have more time to watch the NHL than I thought.
 

IU Hawks fan

They call me IU
Dec 30, 2008
28,516
2,813
NW Burbs
I just heard the update that the players are standing firm. I’m about 15% sure there will be a season this year, which is pretty much not likely. It’s incredible that at a time this country needs the national pastime, they are squabbling over money, mainly the owners. Looks like I might have more time to watch the NHL than I thought.
From the sounds of it, the owners have the right to go ahead and hold a 48 game season with the prorated salaries without any further agreement needed. So I think that is a given, although 48 games would be ridiculous.
 

Static

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Feb 28, 2006
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SoCal
The owners are bluffing hard and need to be taken to the cleaners. God, what a bunch of greedy assholes.
 
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Voight

#winning
Feb 8, 2012
40,368
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Mulberry Street
The owners are bluffing hard and need to be taken to the cleaners. God, what a bunch of greedy assholes.

The thing is.... while they complain about losing money, the team is not their lone source of income. These guys buy teams as trophies, because they are bored & want a hobby and many other reasons.

With the CBA expiring next year & the way negotiations have gone this year I can totally foresee a strike / lockout.
 

Canes

Registered User
Oct 31, 2017
24,996
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An Oblate Spheroid
The owners know that no matter what they do, the players will still get the majority of the blame especially considering their terrible PR, which is both self-inflicted and because of bias towards the owners.
 

Static

HFBoards Sponsor
Sponsor
Feb 28, 2006
47,187
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SoCal
The thing is.... while they complain about losing money, the team is not their lone source of income. These guys buy teams as trophies, because they are bored & want a hobby and many other reasons.

With the CBA expiring next year & the way negotiations have gone this year I can totally foresee a strike / lockout.
Nobody should be buying the BS the owners are selling. Billionaires crying poor should make every fan's blood boil.
 

NJDevs26

Once upon a time...
Mar 21, 2007
67,116
31,150
The thing is.... while they complain about losing money, the team is not their lone source of income.

They're also not the only source of income losing money at the moment. It's not like the owners' other businesses are pandemic-proof either. You have to factor that in to 'well baseball's only losing X'...maybe but everything else they're associated with is losing as well.

The owners know that no matter what they do, the players will still get the majority of the blame especially considering their terrible PR, which is both self-inflicted and because of bias towards the owners.

They'll all get blame, it doesn't even matter who's more at fault or what angle both sides' PR are playing. One of the main differences is you just can't boo an owner. Manfred will probably start getting Bettman and Goodell-style booing. Everyone in baseball will be made to pay for this one way or another in the end.
 
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