IMG Academy will host the first MLBPA-run spring training camp since '95TWITTER
The MLBPA will "open a spring training camp for unsigned players to train for the upcoming season," according to sources cited by Jorge Castillo of the WASHINGTON POST. The camp will be held at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., starting Tuesday and is "tentatively scheduled to run through March 4." Former Astros manager Bo Porter "will lead the workouts." Other coaches and trainers will also be "on hand to assist players." This is the "first time the MLBPA will hold its own spring training camp" since '95, when one was "opened at the end of the players' strike." Nearly 100 of the 166 players who became free agents at the end of last season "remain without teams" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/9). The AP reported players will be "provided workout gear, and the union is arranging liability insurance, travel and housing." Players also will get per diems and are to "bring their own bats and shoes." Personal trainers will "not be allowed inside" the IMG facility. Agent Scott Boras "represents 15 free agents seeking jobs," but he is "not sure whether his clients will work out at his facilities or IMG." Boras' company has its own training facilities in Florida and California (AP, 2/8). MLB Network's Joe Girardi said the camp "would probably be good" for some players. However, he added it would be a "big risk to go to these camps" for other players. MLB Network’s Ron Darling: “It's great for the second tier of free agents because it gives them visibility. It’s one place for scouts and other people to go to see if they're in shape, to see if they would be someone to help their ball club. ... I would be really afraid if I was the top echelon free agent of getting hurt and some team dismissing me and that contract going away” (“MLB Now,” MLB Network, 2/8).
WHO'S AT FAULT? Players like RF J.D. Martinez, 1B Eric Hosmer, 3B Mike Moustakas and P Jake Arrieta remain unsigned, and Cubs P Mike Montgomery said, "If those guys aren't getting signed and we're a week away from spring training, then there's definitely something wrong with how the system is set up." Montgomery: "There's a lack of incentives for teams to spend money to try to win. I think it's unfair to the fans. It's unfair to -- not just the players -- but the owners are doing a disservice to themselves." However, he added, "At the same time, that's the way the agreement is right now, so they don't have to spend the money. They look at it from a business standpoint, so I get it, but it's just not fair to the fans, to not try to put a winning team out there" (THEATHLETIC.com, 2/8).
OF THEIR OWN MAKING: In K.C., Sam Mellinger writes there are "no sympathetic characters here," as it is "really, really, really difficult to side with the players." This is the "players' fault," as teams are "operating in accordance to the incentives put in place, incentives that players negotiated and signed off on a year ago." The players "literally sold negotiating power and earnings -- in free agency, in the draft, everywhere -- for a better lifestyle with things like travel and days off." This is a "new problem for the players, and it will require a new solution" (K.C. STAR, 2/9). ESPN's Buster Olney noted the current union leadership in the last CBA negotiations “shut out most of the agents,” and a “lot of agents were asking me questions leading up to the final terms.” Olney: “Before the ink was dry on that CBA, when they started to see the first specifics about the luxury tax, about the fact that tanking wasn't addressed, they were saying this is a disaster, this is going to be a colossal problem for the players. The players are going pay. Everything that they predicted back then is manifesting now” (“OTL,” ESPN, 2/8).
