Chicago Cubs: Deal or no deal fans have had enough

The trash-talking between the players, MLB, and the owners have pushed the boundary.  Yesterday Chicago Cubs fans, we crossed that boundary into the surreal.

This is out of control.  For the past month, I and many others have written about this fratricidal argument going on in baseball: the accusations, the counter-accusations.

We Chicago Cubs fans have been witness to one of the most juvenile displays of trash talk and one-upmanship from people who have the nation’s pastime in their hands.  Shame.

This, while we’ve had to take it on the chin from a pandemic that has cost a lot of us our way of making a living and, at last count, over 120,000 of us our lives.

But yesterday, we were transported into the surreal.  Competing versions of the outcome of talks between MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and MLBPA President Tony Clark whiplashed baseball fans.

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In a series of tweets beginning just before 1:30 pm yesterday,  Jon Heyman first reported that there were “productive meetings” between MLB and the MLBPA.  An hour or so later he tweeted that players and owners were “closing in on an agreement” that included prorated pay and expanded postseason, and then that “As part of the pending agreement to play the 2020 season between MLB and the players union, the union has agreed to waive any grievance.”

Less than an hour after all that the MLBPA tweeted, “Reports of an agreement are false” and denied to Jeff Todd of MLB Trade Rumors that any agreement had been reached.

Then in the face of all that, MLB tweeted that Manfred “…summarized the framework numerous times in the meeting,  and sent Tony Clark a written summary today. Consistent with our conversations, I am encouraging Clubs to move forward, and I trust Tony is doing the same.”

This so far as we can tell is the framework that may have, or likely has not been agreed to:

• 60 games in 70 days
• Season starts July19/20
• 100% prorated salary
• Expanded playoffs for 2020 and 2021
• MLBPA waives right to file a grievance

All I can say is enough of this.  Just stop.

This latest round is sheer and total incompetence.  How on earth do two high powered guys as Manfred and Clark meet to discuss a sensitive topic like this and first not have an agreement on how to announce the outcome of the talks.  Like a joint press conference or by having your respective press people work out the language.  Geez, this is this elementary stuff.

To be perfectly clear, Rob, Tony, all the owners and players, and everyone else in the game, ALL of you have pissed us off.  Big time.

Fans are tired of billionaire owners complaining about how owning a baseball team is such a chore, or how poor they are.  Nonsense. If it’s so tough, sell the team.

Then we learn that the Yankees were valued at over $5.0 Billion. That MLB just signed a broadcast deal with Turner Sports for $1.0 Billion.  Go cry me a river.

We also don’t want to hear players complaining about getting reduced salaries.  Hey guys, in case you haven’t noticed, some of your fans out here are on unemployment.  Try that for a while, and you know what, that prorated amount of whatever you make, they’ll take it.

So Rob, Tony, and everyone else get off Twitter and stop posting your latest offense or proposal.  We don’t want to hear about this or that salary percentage, this or that number of games, or any of it.  We don’t want to listen to it; we don’t need to hear it.

The only thing we want to hear is “Play Ball.”