Tom Ricketts said he is "pretty optimistic" MLB will return to the field this seasonGETTY IMAGES
Cubs Chair Tom Ricketts said that he "has hope" as MLB players and the league continue to negotiate on a return to play, but like many around the game, he added that he "isn't sure where the answer lies," according to Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com. Ricketts yesterday said, "I'm pretty optimistic we'll get games back on the field. I have full faith and confidence in [Commissioner Rob Manfred]. How we get there is yet to be written, but I'm pretty sure we'll get there." Ricketts resists the perception that MLB clubs are cash cows, saying that yearly revenues are "mostly put right back into the team." Still, he said that he is "adamant about wanting to play this season even though ownership contends playing games means losing more money" (ESPN.com, 6/2). Twins President Dave St. Peter also expressed optimism about the negotiations: "I am more optimistic about playing this season as I have been over the last couple of weeks." He added, "The reality of it is that the situation is a little closer to resolution than most people believe. I truly believe that." St. Peter: "Owners and players ultimately want to play. I think they want to find a bridge, come together" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 6/3).
SHORT-SEASON BREAKDOWN: In N.Y., Ken Davidoff writes the shorter season that was reportedly discussed by the league earlier this week "very likely won’t happen," as MLB "didn’t offer this during Sunday’s virtual meeting as much as wryly mention it as a possibility that would give the players their prorated pay while not financially overextending the owners." But everyone "knows how silly such a short schedule would look, especially with the decks clearing to hold a three-month regular season plus expanded playoffs in October." Even "floating the notion does accomplish something, however: It yanks the moral high ground from under the players’ collective feet" (N.Y. POST, 6/3). YAHOO SPORTS' Dan Wetzel wrote the prospect of a 50-game season is "almost assuredly, just a negotiating ploy to scare the players." And while it "would be a total farce," it also would "be a lot of fun." Wetzel: "This would be the wildest pennant race of all time. Instead of the typical marathon, it would be a demolition derby charge where literally any team could make it or miss it" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 6/2).
THE HOLDUP: On Long Island, David Lennon cites sources as saying that baseball is "now all square on the medical front." As such, Lennon writes this "once-in-a-century coronavirus won’t deter baseball from attempting to play." Instead, the "current holdup is exactly what we and some others suggested last month, and even well before that: It’s all about the money." Amid protests following the death of George Floyd, MLB is in a "crisis in a different universe of importance ... obviously, which makes the sport’s complaints look even smaller than before." Yet, the two sides "seemingly remain no closer to an agreement than they were when this all started" (NEWSDAY, 6/3). In Boston, Dan Shaughnessy writes, "Watching this baseball labor fiasco slowly unfold is the ultimate lose-lose exercise." It is the "most tone-deaf, callous, self-centered, stupid, and clueless behavior these eyes have seen in 45 years of covering professional sports." Shaughnessy: "Do I make myself clear?" (BOSTON GLOBE, 6/3). In Toronto, Gregor Chisholm writes, "Nothing ever comes easy in baseball labour disputes and this one won’t be any different." Still, "logic suggests cooler heads will ultimately prevail during these talks, because they usually do" (TORONTO STAR, 6/3).
