Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred gestures as he answers questions during a news conference after negotiations with the players' association toward a labor deal, Tuesday, March 1, 2022, at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Fla. Manfred said he is canceling the first two series of the season that was set to begin March 31, dropping the schedule from 162 games to likely 156 games at most. Manfred said the league and union have not made plans for future negotiations. Players won't be paid for missed games. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee

MLB Spokesman Says Players Association Moved 'Backwards' with Newest CBA Proposal

Erin WalshMar 6, 2022

It appears Major League Baseball isn't happy with the players union's latest proposal.

An MLB spokesperson said Sunday that the Players Association "went backwards" on some issues with its latest proposal and that the two sides are "deadlocked":

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However, the MLBPA disputed the league's characterization, saying it has already made "major concessions":

Jon Heyman of MLB Network added:

The MLBPA's latest proposal included a $5 million reduction in the pre-arbitration bonus pool, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers. It did not include changes to the luxury-tax proposal, Rogers added.

MLB and the union still appear to be far apart in negotiations. According to Rogers, the union's threshold for the luxury tax begins at $238 million and ends at $263 million. MLB's offer starts at $220 million and increases to $230 million over five years.

In addition, the union is asking $80 million for the pre-arbitration pool, according to Rogers. The league offered $30 million in its latest proposal.

With little progress made Sunday, the two sides are expected to meet again soon. According to Nightengale, they could meet as soon as Monday in New York.

With seemingly no agreement in sight, MLB announced the cancellation of regular-season games through the first two series of 2022. More cancellations are expected to be on the way, according to Nightengale, with the season potentially delayed until mid-April.

The last time MLB had a work stoppage was in 1994-95. A strike began in August 1994 and resulted in the cancellation of the remainder of regular-season games and the entire postseason, including the World Series.