MLB reportedly hopes pushing back the implementation of a pitch clock will improve labor relationsGETTY IMAGES
MLB is prepared to "scuttle the implementation" of a pitch clock until at least '22 as part of a "wide-ranging proposal" to the MLBPA that would include the ability to implement a three-batter-minimum rule for pitchers and roster-size changes in '20, according to sources cited by Jeff Passan of ESPN.com. Sources said that MLB is also "proposing limitations on position players' usage as pitchers, getting rid of the waiver trading period, further cutting mound visits and potentially shortening inning breaks." Amid tension between the league and MLBPA "stemming from a free-agent market that players have found unsatisfactory," MLB offered "not to revisit the issue" of pitch clocks until after the '21 expiration of the current CBA. Sources said that a number of proposals from MLB "dovetail with past suggestions from the union," which lends "credence to the notion that an agreement can be reached with minimal animus." Under MLB's proposal, rosters would be "expanded by one to 26 players" in '20. Sources said that MLB also "took the union's suggestion of a single trade deadline before the All-Star break and countered by keeping the current July 31 deadline in place but eliminating trades in August for players who clear waivers." Sources said that MLB also proposed having the right in '19 to "shorten inning breaks from 2 minutes, 5 seconds to 1 minute, 55 seconds in locally broadcast games, in addition to shaving 30 seconds off the current 2-minute, 25-second breaks in national games" (ESPN.com, 2/26).
CLOCK WATCHING: The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal cites sources as saying that MLB "views its willingness to abandon the clock until at least 2022 as an olive branch to the union it hopes will lead to improved labor relations." It remains to be seen "how players will react" to the withdrawal of draft incentives and service-time adjustments, among other elements that are part of the league's latest proposal (TWITTER.com, 2/27).
THE ART OF THE DEAL: ESPN's Mark Teixeira said the owners are "so smart" and are "slowly clawing back some of the things that the players had the leg up on in previous negotiations." Referring to the pitch clock, Teixeira said, "It's almost like a bait-and-switch. The owners throw something out there that they know most players are going to be against, and it's just going to be negotiation leverage for the next few years. The owners played this perfectly” ("Get Up," ESPN, 2/27).
