Major League owners have approved a plan to start the season around July 4. The season will be approximately 80 games and everything else has been blown up.
- No fans in the stands.
- No league play this year. Competition will be regionalized so the NL East teams will play each other and teams from the AL East. Same goes for AL and NL Central and AL and NL West
- The DH is coming for everyone.
- 14 teams will make the playoffs with the top team in each division being able to choose their playoff opponent.
The Eastern Division is going to be absolutely murderous and even with an expanded playoff field, the Phillies have next to no chance of making the postseason. Eighty games against the Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Nationals, Braves, and Mets are going to be brutal. At least the Marlins and Orioles will be there for comedic relief.
The Players Association still has to agree with this proposal and there are some concerns, including virus testing, roster size, travel, and perhaps the biggest hurdle, salaries.
The owners want to to play players based on league revenue instead of prorating salaries for the number of games played. The players see this as a salary cap and won't go for it. Owners say ticket sales account for anywhere between 40 and 50 percent of revenue, which is why they're pushing for the 50-50 split between players and owners.
The two sides are scheduled to meet virtually today. Stay tuned.
