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MLBTR Chat: 3/3/22
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Anthony Franco
4:35
Hey everyone, looking forward to another chat (although I'm guessing there'll be a lot of gloomy questions)
Going to give the queue a minute or two here and then we'll get started
Sad mlb fan
4:37
Do you expect MLB and MLBPA to start negotiating again tommrow ?
Anthony Franco
4:37
I guess you could argue they already have today, with the talks between Halem and Meyer
But I don't think we're going back to daily negotiations deep in the evening again any time soon
John
4:37
Any positives from all this mess?
Anthony Franco
4:38
Only that neither side has walked away from the table entirely, in my view
4:39
So long as they're still talking, there's a chance for movement. If we get to a point where either side (the league would seem likelier to do this) cuts off talks and ends up involving the court system, it'd be a complete disaster
Dave
4:39
Over or under 120 games played this year?
Trevor
4:39
What do today’s meetings mean going forward? And what’s both parties excuse for not meeting everyday until a deal is made?
Anthony Franco
4:40
It doesn't seem the league wants to meet every day. They're clearly of the opinion that they value April less than they believe the players do (presumably because of the comparatively low attendance and lack of immediate urgency on the local TV rebates), and they seem more content to slow-play things in hopes of brining the players' ask on the CBT and pre-arb bonus pool down
4:42
As for the O/U 120, I'd guess under. But if the past couple weeks show anything, it's that this stuff fluctuates wildly and to take all the reports  of both progress and extreme negativity with a grain of salt. So I could very well be wrong, and I sure hope I am
Lance Tray
4:42
I see all the minor league signings on this website throughout the lockout. Will the minor league season be affected by the lockout or will they play their regular season schedule on time?
Anthony Franco
4:42
Only in the sense that minor leaguers on teams' 40-man rosters can't play
Otherwise, the minors are a full go. They'll start as scheduled
Guest
4:43
Is there one single issue that must be resolved before the season begins? Could an array of issues be tabled for later if there is agreement on one point?
Let's Play Ball
4:43
What about the latest proposal by the league should we find inadequate as fans?  Lots of improvements for players from the previous CBA and it's not like the huge contracts were not flying before the lockout.
Anthony Franco
4:44
The big issue's the CBT. There's an $18MM gap in the parties' offer on the 2022 base threshold, and that'd get larger as the years progress since the union wants more rapid future growth than the league does
4:45
As for the fans' perspective, I don't know that you need to find anything about the league's offer inadequate. Many fans are content to blame everybody or tune out the issues entirely, and I think that's a perfectly defensible course of action from your perspective
4:46
But the league offers on the CBT haven't kept pace with revenue issues of late, and the league minimum salary MLB's offering barely tracks with inflation even though the league set record revenues in 2019
4:47
You may not find that to be a problem, and I think it's understandable. But I also get why the players' union thinks they can do better than what the league's putting out there now, particularly if they're offering the league an expansion of the playoff field
Alright, let's hit some non-lockout questions
Guarded Indian
4:47
Two players you see heading to Cleveland when free agency opens up?
Anthony Franco
4:48
Tommy Pham and Alex Colomé? I don't think they're going to go crazy or anything
Andrew
4:48
Do you put any stock into Chris Sale saying (via Matt Barnes IG live last week) saying he doesn't want to leave Boston? He can opt out of 3/75 after 2022, do you see him exercising that opt out if he has a healthy (though already shortened) 2022?
Anthony Franco
4:49
Haven't seen those quotes so I can't comment on them. But in a vacuum, I'd lean towards Sale exercising the opt-out if he looks like peak Sale for a full season (or whatever we get of it) this year
Jason b
4:49
Do you think the Mets will make another big move or two and if so what do you think they will get?
Anthony Franco
4:50
Think one of Davis or McNeil's getting traded, perhaps for pitching help
I also think they make a lot of sense for a run at a Willson Contreras trade
Fpreciado_63@hotmail.com
4:51
Hello Anthony, the players while the strike is on can play in  other countries.
Anthony Franco
4:51
The union believes this to be the case, at least
Zak
4:51
Do you expect any locked out big name FAs trying their luck in international leagues?
Anthony Franco
4:52
I don't actually think we'll see any stars do this, particularly since the Asian leagues have roster limits on foreign-born players that are mostly already accounted for
Maybe a couple journeymen relievers sign in the Mexican League though
Bluejayfan in Missouri
4:52
Any word on if the Bluejays are going to extend Vlad or Bo in the near future? Thanks for the chats, keeps me sane during this mess!
Anthony Franco
4:52
I'm sure they'd love to but I don't know that either of those players is feeling a ton of urgency at this point to sign that kind of deal
4:53
Vlad's already projected for almost $8MM this year as a Super Two. Bichette's a year away but trending towards pretty solid arb payouts himself
4:54
I think they might both be content to just go year by year at this point
Ewan Mee
4:54
What with the pandemic and now the lockout, what chance have draftees from 2019 to show their worth and get added to the 40-man rather than face the Rule 5 roulette?
Anthony Franco
4:54
The minors will keep going
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