Clark has put the league on notice and has struck a bit of fear into the front office of every teamGETTY IMAGES
Animosity between MLB owners and players had "been building for quite some time" before comments made by Braves Exec VP & GM Alex Anthopoulos upset the MLBPA this week, but now it "feels like things are going to get a lot worse before they get better," according to Gregor Chisholm of the TORONTO STAR. The "ill will was on full display" Wednesday when MLBPA Exec Dir Tony Clark "lashed out" at Anthopoulos for alluding to conversations with other teams about free agency. Now that an official investigation has been launched by the MLBPA, the "next steps are likely to involve requesting information from the league and potentially filing a grievance." The investigation "appears to be a symbolic gesture to prove Clark has the players' backs and that he's preparing to address some difficult issues in the next round of talks." Clark has "put the league on notice and has struck a bit of fear into the front office of every team." He "wants teams to know that the MLBPA is listening" (TORONTO STAR, 11/8). In Boston, Michael Silverman notes the players' union "sent out a warning flare this week that it is not going to wait for another deep freeze to set in on the free agent market before speaking out" (BOSTON GLOBE, 11/8).
PART OF A BIGGER PICTURE: SPORTSNET.ca's Shi Davidi wrote Anthopoulos' quote "in a vacuum" is "innocuous." Anthopoulos has "issued some variation of that low-grade boilerplate material at the beginning of every off-season dating back to his days" as GM of the Blue Jays. However, MLB is "not in a vacuum and players have had their guard up over the way the past two off-seasons have played out, as players have curiously languished in free agency, upending the way the open market has typically operated" (SPORTSNET.ca, 11/6). ESPN's Pablo Torre said, "Maybe Alex Anthopoulos isn't giving you the giant smoking gun that you need to prove collusion, but the context of what's been happening explains why Clark is being adversarial here" ("High Noon," ESPN, 11/7). MLB Network's Ron Darling said players "have a very keen eye" on how the MLBPA is "going to react to any of this stuff." There is "going to be a very contentious relationship this winter and next winter on every" issue between the league and players ("MLB Now," MLB Network, 11/7). MLB Network's Chris Russo said the MLBPA "will not be accommodating" with any of MLB's pace of play initiatives "until they see how this free agent period works" ("High Heat," MLB Network, 11/7).
FIRST BATTLE OF UPCOMING WAR: ESPN's Jeff Passan noted it will be "really difficult" for the MLBPA to prove collusion based on Anthopoulos' comments, but the union is "looking for anything in this burgeoning war" between it and the league. Passan: "Free agency has not been the same over the last three years since the most recent collective bargaining agreement than it was in the past, and because of that, the union is looking for somewhere to fight. It's looking to find something to plant its flag and say, 'We're doing to work for the players.'" He added, "This is just the beginning of something that is going to be lasting for quite a while. ... This is a war that's just starting" ("OTL," ESPN, 11/7).
