Major League Baseball has made a significant step in the attempt to resolve several issues that arose from the possibility of having a canceled or shorter 2020 season due to ongoing coronavirus pandemic. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the league came to an agreement with MLB Players Association on several key points regarding this situation while committing to pay $170 million in salary advance to players in the next two months.
Passan reports that MLB and the players association were engaged in talks for the past two weeks, trying to find common ground and come to the best solution moving forward. Besides the players and league officials, the negotiations also included owners, agents, executives, and union officials, among others.
The owners of MLB teams ended up agreeing to pay a salary advance up to $95,000 per day to eligible players for the next 60 days or until the 2020 MLB season officially starts. Once the season kicks off, the money will be accounted towards their regular salaries. If the season ends up being canceled altogether, the players will get to keep the money.
Reportedly, both players and owners hope that they will get to play as many games as possible and agreed on possible doubleheaders, longer regular season, and games without an audience if needed.
One of the bigger issues that needed to be solved was service time. Players were set on having 2020 counted full towards free agency, arbitration, and pension, even if the season doesn’t play out. Once MLB representatives agreed on this, the rest of the negotiations went smoothly.
The agreement also gave MLB’s commissioner Rob Manfred discretion to short the 2020 MLB Draft, and move it to June or July. Manfred can also shorten the 2021 draft if needed and delay the international signing period in both of the following two years.
