League Notes: MLB Union Threatening To Block Shohei Otani Posting Agreement

The MLB Players' Association is reportedly "threatening to block a new posting agreement" over Japanese baseball club Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters’ Shohei Otani posting fee. The union is "unwilling to sign off on a new posting agreement" because it includes a clause that allows Nippon Ham to claim a $20M posting fee for Otani, who will "only be able to earn a fraction of that amount" should he sign with an MLB club this winter. That imbalance is "ostensibly the union’s issue with the clause" (KYODO, 11/2).

Rugby League Players Association President Cameron Smith said that the "looming" resolution of National Rugby League's pay dispute will be a "good deal" for the game. Smith said that he expected an agreement would be reached with the NRL "soon" on a collective bargaining agreement "which has been batted back and forth for almost 12 months"(Brisbane COURIER-MAIL, 11/2).