Cubs players furious with MLB; free agent frenzy to come; Opening Day in May?

With MLB officially postponing the first two series of the regular season earlier this week, it’s no surprise to see players venting their frustrations across social media. It has grown apparent that the league has wanted to control the situation from the very start based on their actions. Several Chicago Cubs (some former) have done no different and have allowed their voice to be heard on what has proven to be an ugly war between the league and the union.

First, you have the fiery Willson Contreras, who has always been known to be vocal and say what he believes in. Kudos to him for not staying silent now. Looking at the details of the lockout, it is no wonder the players are furious over what they feel is an unnecessary cancellation of games. “Good faith” are terms loosely utilized by the league without actually proving it. In short, the league has said all the right things but their feet have yet to match their mouths.

Elsewhere, Cubs veteran Jason Heyward recently took to Instagram to roast MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and make it known of what is believed to be the league’s plan all along from the very start: a delay to the 2022 season. With their eyes set on an owner-friendly agreement, MLB suspiciously stalled from the very beginning, imposing a lockout without negotiating in the first place, followed by six weeks of complete silence. This is beyond not negotiating in good faith, but with the owners in charge of the show, who’s there to stop them?

Even former Cubs fan favorite, Anthony Rizzo, had something to say in regards to MLB’s self-imposed lockout and the MLBPA’s decision to turn down the league’s “last and best offer” on Tuesday evening.

Cubs: Should we be expecting an Opening Day in May or June instead?

Manfred and the league hit the players with a lockout on Dec. 1 in what he said would help push both sides to the bargaining table. Well, then nearly two months passed without any movement whatsoever – so it’s hard to believe that statement.

Even after the players and owners met for eight days in a row and everyone was seemingly inches from a deal, why hasn’t the lockout since been lifted as a sign of good faith from the MLB?

An article on MLB Trade Rumors specifically outlines the cause, and when you read it, it all starts to come together.

As Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic outlines, local television contracts don’t call for rebates from teams until roughly 25 games are lost. Jeff Passan of ESPN adds some specifics, writing that avoiding rebates requires broadcasting between 138 and 150 games (with slight team-to-team variation). That plays into the owners’ ability to hold out, as does the general fact that their wealth considerably outpaces that of the players. In cold-weather states, April is a relatively poorly attended month anyhow — at least after the early rush of the opening series.”

What I personally take from this is it wouldn’t be far-fetched to think the owners wanted to pay the players less this season after their self-stated catastrophic losses in 2020 while ensuring they don’t lose money based on TV deals that are in place. The owners have all the leverage and time on their side. Important to note that the owners pockets are much deeper than that of the players.

Especially most players who are near league minimum and and therefore aren’t exactly keen on missing out on a whole season. Never mind the ballparks that will remain closed and the workers at those stadiums who depend on he MLB season who must now deal with consequences that aren’t of their own making, let alone the minor leaguers who are hoping to showcase their abilities at the major league level.

The league is and always has been primarily concerned with making themselves as much money as possible. Essentially, an entire season lost is a haymaker to the players, where it is more of a mere jab to the owners with how much net worth difference there is between the two sides. Therefore, the owners believe the players will eventually have to cave to a more league favorable CBA or the players will ultimately wind up doing more damage to themselves by not being paid at all. It is easy for the more wealthy MLB players to stick together at the time and “stick it to the man”, but it is the younger players, a lot of them, who wind up suffering the most. And that is something the MLBPA must be aware of to avoid any internal conflict.

Going back to the bit from MLBTR, basically the league can afford to lose around 25 games before they face financial penalty from their television contracts. This theory can put us right on pace for a new CBA toward the end of March to allow for free agency part two, spring training in the beginning of April and an Opening Day of May 1 (or thereabouts).