Dodgers' Walker Buehler Says MLB Lockout Isn't 'Millionaires vs. Billionaires'

As collective bargaining agreement discussions continue between Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association, the two sides don't appear to be any closer to striking a deal. 

That said, players are beginning to get frustrated, and Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Walker Buehler slammed team owners on Thursday night in since-deleted Tweets. 

Buehler's comments came after The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal summarized the ongoing situation on Thursday:

"The issues essentially are the same as they were when the lockout began. The proposals creeping back and forth are proposals that could have been exchanged in November. But the owners’ strategy from the start was to squeeze the union until regular-season games were in jeopardy, all the while recoiling in disgust when the player-serfs rejected their crumbs and refused to view them as benevolent despots."

The MLB and MLBPA have agreed to some aspects of a new CBA, but ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Wednesday that the two sides remain far apart on financials, including the competitive balance tax, pre-arbitration bonus pool, minimum salary and the draft lottery. 

MLB has already threatened to cancel games if a new deal is not agreed upon by Monday. The league also said is has no plans to makeup missed games, adding that players would lose game checks. 

The MLBPA reportedly responded to the league's threat, saying it will not endorse an expanded playoff if players don't get paid for a full 162-game season, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers. 

The lockout began on Dec. 2 and, at this point, it doesn't seem like the season will begin on time. The first games of the 2022 campaign are set for March 31, but with no CBA in place, games will be affected unless both sides can come to an agreement.