Posts tagged MLB
In swing states that once went for Trump, unions organize to prevent a repeat
October 1, 2024 // This year, UNITE HERE says it is once again mobilizing its members and plans to knock on more than 3 million doors in Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina and Michigan “to ensure that Kamala Harris wins the presidency.” In Wisconsin, the Laborers are building political messaging into a union project to engage members more closely, “connecting union members with other union members,” Miller said, to explain how negotiations affect wages and health and retirement benefits, as well as the importance of increasing union representation.
Players’ union head blames quicker pitch clock after series of pitcher elbow injuries
April 9, 2024 // Cleveland’s Shane Bieber, Atlanta’s Spencer Strider, the New York Yankees’ Jonathan Loáisiga, Miami’s Eury Pérez and Oakland’s Trevor Gott are among the pitchers diagnosed with elbow injuries. “This statement ignores the empirical evidence and much more significant long-term trend, over multiple decades, of velocity and spin increases that are highly correlated with arm injuries,” Major League Baseball said in a responding statement. MLB said it is undergoing a research study into causes of increased injuries. It cited an analysis by Johns Hopkins that “found no evidence to support that the introduction of the pitch clock has increased injuries” and “no evidence that pitchers who worked quickly … or sped up their pace were more likely to sustain an injury than those who did not.”
PLAYERS’ ASSOCIATIONS WARN SPORTS ILLUSTRATED ON UNION BUSTING
March 7, 2024 // The AFL-CIO Sports Council, which launched in 2022 to assist athletes in unionizing, released the statement Monday. The warning doesn’t mention any specific consequence that could arise. However, players in those leagues could refuse to conduct interviews with SI writers and podcasters, decline to attend SI parties and otherwise boycott creation of SI content. For the storied publication, which for decades influenced the sports industry like no other, a loss of access to players and their unions would make reporting more difficult, and it would both diminish and delegitimize the SI brand.
Why baseball’s next unionization effort could come from MLB front offices: ‘We’re not protected at all’
May 8, 2023 // The lawsuit invoked the Curt Flood Act, a 1998 piece of antitrust reform named after the player who sued MLB to end the reserve clause. Judge Gardephe did not find the case convincing enough to transform the Wyckoff and Cox suit into the front-office employee equivalent of Flood's historic triumph; instead, he reinforced that teams were behaving within their rights set forth by MLB's antitrust exemption. "Because scouts' work has a direct and critical effect on the selection of players who will participate in the games that the public will watch," Gardephe opined, "their role cannot be characterized as 'wholly collateral' or 'incidental' to the business of professional baseball."
MLB and players reportedly reach an agreement to unionize the minor leagues
September 12, 2022 // The bargaining unit would include minor leaguers except for 40-man major league roster players on option, who are covered by the big league union; players assigned to the Dominican Summer League, which is outside the U.S.; and players on the voluntary retired list. Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred said Friday he anticipated an agreement. Martin Scheinman
MLB, union hold ‘productive’ talks but remain far apart ahead of Monday deadline
February 27, 2022 // As of early Sunday afternoon, the two sides remained considerably apart on virtually all of the core economic issues which both sides were willing to discuss, including the minimum salary, the pre-arbitration bonus pool and, most notably, the competitive-balance tax. They had made progress on the draft lottery, with the top six picks in play, although the clubs wanted a 14-team tournament and the players prefer 12.
Labor Tensions Just Came for MLB Spring Training
February 23, 2022 // Since December, Major League Baseball players have been locked out of their training facilities, thanks to a disagreement between their union and team owners. With the off-season coming to an end, the dispute is now guaranteed to postpone the start of spring training—and could potentially delay Opening Day.
Marty Walsh Offers to Help Resolve MLB Lockout
February 12, 2022 // The longtime Red Sox fan said he had spoken with representatives of the owners and the Major League Baseball Players Association about the ongoing negotiations
MLB lockout: Everything to know about baseball’s first work stoppage since 1994-95
December 2, 2021 // Less than two hours prior to that deadline, however, owners voted unanimously to force a work stoppage on Thursday. They did so in the form of a lockout. As such, baseball will endure a work stoppage for the first time since the players' strike of 1994-95.