Following the NFL’s, NBA’s and NHL’s schedule changes in light of recent COVID surges, Major League Baseball has temporarily postponed the first two months of the 2022 season “as a precautionary measure,” Commissioner Rob Manfred said.
“I know it might seem a bit premature to make this decision now,” he said, “but based on the potential virulence – isn’t that a great word? – virulence of the Omicron virus, the team owners feel this is the best decision for the safety of their bank accounts. Besides, since we’ve already locked out the players anyway …”
He said temporarily putting the first 62 days of the season on hold is the best way to get around any legal issues the players’ union might raise.
“Considering the owners’ belief that they were scr- … that they didn’t successfully manage their last negotiation with the MLBPA and their unanimous decision to not give an inch in this one, I think their decision to delay the start of the season is the smartest way to get around any union claims that we’re to blame,” Manfred said, adding that if it turns out the two months of lost games can’t be made up and the players don’t get paid, “well, tough noogies.”
Bruce Meyer, chief negotiator for the union, said the owners’ decision “flies in the face of any logic and is patently illegal. It reminds me of these Republicans who are peddling lies that the 2020 presidential was stolen and are changing the rules on how future elections should be conducted.”
“If the commissioner’s order postponing the games isn’t quashed – isn’t that a great word? – quashed within the next 72 hours,” Meyer said, “we will file lawsuits against Manfred and the ownership of the 30 Major League franchises for restraint of trade, defamation of character, bank fraud, tax fraud, real estate fraud, misuse of inaugural funds, incitement to riot, election interference … wait a minute. I think I’ve got these papers mixed up with something else.”
Manfred countered that if a new collective bargaining agreement is signed within the next 72 hours he would be willing to “unpostpone” the games – but that the owners demands include restoring the reserve clause and adding a salary cap, the elimination of multi-year contracts and ownership of the 1909-1911 T206 Sweet Caporal Honus Wagner baseball card.
In a related development, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell reversed his most recent decision to allow the rescheduling of games and said he will stand by a memo he issued in July in which the league’s 32 teams could be forced to forfeit regular-season games.
“Henceforth – isn’t that a great word? – henceforth, no games will be rescheduled,” Goodell said. “As I wrote in my memo, if a game is canceled ‘due to a COVID outbreak among non-vaccinated players on one of the competing teams, the team with the outbreak will forfeit and be deemed to have played 16 games for purposes of draft, waiver priority, etc. … and for playoff seeding, the forfeiting team would be assessed a loss and the other team a win.’”
Explaining his change of mind, Goodell said, “Did you happen to see the TV ratings for the Redsk- … for the Washington Football Team-Eagles and Seahawks-Rams games? Holy crap! Worse than NHL games, if the NHL was playing any games.”
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