Chicago Cubs: What the heck is MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred doing?

Chicago Cubs: Manfred fires the opening salvo in CBA talks

Not content with declaring war on minor league baseball, Manfred declared war on another front. Negotiations over a new CBA with the MLBPA.

Tensions have been rising between MLB team owners and the MLBPA ever since the 2017-2021 CBA was inked. Under Bud Selig, who endured the 1994-95 strike, MLB played the role of broker, an entity that worked to de-escalate tensions and work compromises that kept the peace.  Not so Manfred, who seems determined to force a confrontation.

The MLBPA and MLB agreed to start “preliminary talks” supposedly to ensure a smooth transition from the current CBA to the new one that would go into effect in 2022.  It went badly right off the bat, pardon the pun.

According to NBCSports, Manfred characterized the early talks this way:

"“The comments, the way the conversation actually went, as opposed to the way that it was spun: we invited the MLBPA to come forward with suggestions about midterm modifications that might address some of their concerns. In the meeting, Mr. Meyer suggested a series of changes that would turn the Basic Agreement back 50 years. I mean, essentially give back to the union everything we’ve achieved over the last few decades. I asked, in response to his suggestion, what was in that deal for the clubs? He said, ‘Labor peace.’ The way the conversation actually went is I said to him, ‘Labor peace is a mutual benefit. It’s not something that you trade economics against. It is a mutual benefit it keeps the players working and getting paid and it keeps our business forward.’ That’s how the conversation actually went.”"

Now, this comment is just dumb on its face.  First, fifty years ago, the reserve clause was still in effect, and baseball was still three years away from the Flood v. Kuhn case that ended up as the basis for nullifying the reserve clause.

Second, as I said, peace between the players’ union and owners was achieved through economics.  As the pie got more abundant, so did everyone’s slices. MLB’s role was arbitrating the precision of the slices. However, since then, players’ salaries have been declining even as profits for owners and MLB have reached record highs through TV deals and wallet-busting ticket and concession prices that have fans deserting MLB ballparks like the plague hit.

Chicago Cubs: Ooops…maybe Manfred went too far

The reaction to Manfred’s comments was harsh and not just from the MLBPA.  Fans across the country, perhaps realizing both the gravity of the situation and finally reaching the limit on how much they are willing to pay to see a game, hit back at hard.

So now this sop to the fans.  Manfred announced at the Owners’ Meeting last week that MLB might be willing to rethink the blackout rules for cord-cutters as early as next spring.

The blackout has long been the bane of fans and more so now that increasing numbers of households have gone to streaming services rather than traditional cable or satellite systems like DISH or DirecTV.

But in my book, it’s too little too late. That should have been done a decade or more ago.  Baseball fans have great tolerance for their sport and their favorite teams.  They suffered through the1994-95 strike seasons, the PED scandal, tear downs and rebuilds, and now a high tech cheating scandal. But being ripped off while being told by the Commissioner that they’re not?  That could be the ballgame.