Strike Coming?

[revo]

Players are getting exasperated at the slowness of free agency. Collusion is feared. Teams seem to be using the same algorithms to determine player value. Adam Wainwright says he fears for a mid-season walkout:

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/cardinals-former-all-star-adam-wainwright-is-worried-about-a-mid-season-players-strike/

[Judge Jude]

I'll believe it when I see it.

I understand why the players are frustrated, and there is a whiff of collusion beyond just getting smarter about overpaying good-but-over-30 players. but I think the owners are at a sweet spot, where the amounts the players do make is just too much to blow off.

[Ken]

I think that would be incredibly unwise. With the waning popularity of baseball, a strike would push fans away permanently and this time they may not be able to recover. If they don't like contracts now, wait until those big TV deals dry up because there's no ad revenue for a sport whose median fan age is 55.

[madducks]

So, Bryce Harper turning down $300 million over 10 years means collusion by the owners? That's going to be a big part of the owners argument.

[cavebird]

I don't see it happening until the CBA expires. It would be tough for a players consensus before then, and it is trickier legally, too. Unless the owners make some concessions for the next CBA, I would assume there will be a strike/lock-out then.