MLB has begun postponing games amid a lockout that has gone on for more than two months. It remains to be seen if the league will cancel games that count.

The league announced Friday that the beginning of its spring training schedule has been postponed until March 5, at the earliest. All tickets will reportedly be fully refunded to fans as collective bargaining agreement negotiations continue with the MLB Players Association.

The full statement:

“We regret that, without a collective bargaining agreement in place, we must postpone the start of Spring Training games until no earlier than Saturday, March 5th. All 30 Clubs are unified in their strong desire to bring players back to the field and fans back to the stands. The Clubs have adopted a uniform policy that provides an option for full refunds for fans who have purchased tickets from the Clubs to any Spring Training games that are not taking place. We are committed to reaching an agreement that is fair to each side. On Monday, members of the owners’ bargaining committee will join an in-person meeting with the Players Association and remain every day next week to negotiate and work hard towards starting the season on time.”

The MLBPA soon responded with its own statement, in which it doubted the necessity of MLB's move and noted the lockout itself is explicitly the owners' doing.

Statement from the Major League Baseball Players Association: pic.twitter.com/iboIiZqr0O

— MLBPA Communications (@MLBPA_News) February 18, 2022

In a normal offseason, MLB pitchers and catchers would have started reporting to spring training on Feb. 15, with all other players showing up over the next week or so. But this is obviously not a normal offseason.

MLB and the players union have exchanged several proposals over the last few weeks, though all that has seemed to lead to is short meetings and public posturing. The most recent meeting reportedly lasted only 15 minutes, though The Athletic reports MLB head negotiator Dan Halem and MLBPA head negotiator Bruce Meyer had a subsequent side meeting that lasted about 20 minutes.

MLB has reportedly set the date of Feb. 28 as the deadline for an agreement before opening day will have to be postponed.

Source: Read Full Article