Major League Baseball is making its stance clear as the league and the MLBPA head toward the possibility of canceling regular season games.
Previous reports indicated that Major League Baseball had set Feb. 28 as the drop-dead date where regular season games would be lost if no deal had been reached. However, there had been some suggestion that the date could be negotiable if progress were being made.
But progress is not being made, according to an MLB spokesman.
MLB is taking a hard stance and now says the Feb. 28 date is not negotiable, and there will be significant repercussions if no deal is reached.
A Major League Baseball spokesperson said tonight that if a deal is not in place by Feb. 28, regular season games will be canceled. “A deadline is a deadline,” the spokesperson said. Player pay would not be recouped, nor would those games be rescheduled, the spokesperson said.
— Evan Drellich (@EvanDrellich) February 23, 2022
Ultimately, this clarification might not matter anyway. While the two sides have been meeting regularly, little progress has been made on key issues, and the sides remain far apart. Spring training games have already been postponed, and that will continue as well.
While there remains time for a deal, there are few reasons to believe the two sides can hammer something out in five days. The question now may be how much of the season is lost.
Photo: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
