MLB proposes new service time rules in the latest CBA negotiations per. Report
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Last month, Major League Baseball and MLB Players Associated held their first face-to-face negotiation meeting in an attempt to reach a new agreement. The current CBA expires on December 1, and baseball - official major league baseball - cannot be played without a new deal.
During their meeting last month, MLB proposed a revised service time arrangement in which arbitrators split a $ 1 billion pool and all players became a free agent at 29 1/2 years, reports Joel Sherman from New York Post. Here are more details from Sherman:
What MLB proposed was to create a pool of 1 billion. Dollars (and to link this pool to revenue in the coming years) for all qualified players to replace arbitration. A formula would be created to determine how much players would receive. Arbitrators received approximately $ 650 million for this season.
And free agency of 29 ¹ / ₂ (birthdays before or after July 1 would determine the half year), would allow all players to get at least one free agent shot in their twenties.
MLBPA is likely to have more issues with the proposal. To begin with, setting up a $ 1 billion pool for arbitrators is like a salary c. It’s a fixed pool of money that can not be exceeded, and the union has stuck to any kind of hard c on the player’s payroll over the decades. .
It would also help some players set the free agent age at 29 1/2 - Sherman notes that Aaron Judge would become a free agent this offseason under the proposal rather than having to wait until next year - but hurt others. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. would remain in control of the Blue Jays for 10 years before, for example, hitting free agency rather than the usual six.
Starless agents in their mid-20s like Alex Rodriguez and Bryce Harper are best able to move the payline up. MLB’s proposal would stifle this growth. MLBPA could counter with free agency at the age of 29 1/2 or six years service time (the current system), whichever comes first, although it would not combat service time manipulation for very young players like Guerrero.
The general rule of thumb is that if MLB proposes it, it saves the owners money in some way, and it should be noted that proposal at this point is just that: proposal. They are not a final offer and there is still plenty of time to negotiate. Last month, it was reported that MLB proposed a $ 100 million paycheck with a drastically lowered $ 180 million luxury tax.