NEWSLETTER
The quarantummy is reaching the point where I know I’ve been way too into eating-my-feelings the last two months. It’s kinda bs how much you can pack on in two months, and how re-ditching it is going to take me twice that long.
• If and however MLB begins play this year, it seems a virtual certainty that at least some players will not be able to play (because of medical conditions) or will choose not to play (for personal/family/health reasons). It might seem obvious what would happen, contractually, in those situations (if you have to sit out because you’re at-risk, you get paid and get service time like you were on the IL; if you choose not to play, that’s fine, but you don’t get paid or get service time) … but actually when you start really digging in, it gets way more complicated:
What if they start up the baseball season, and it starts without Mike Trout? Or Bryce Harper?
New column: Rob Manfred says MLB won't force players to play if they have doubts they'll be safe.
What happens if players actually take them up on it?https://t.co/4aoC5y3YlU— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) May 15, 2020
• It’s not going to be easy, at all, to draw lines between players who truly cannot be expected to play in this environment and players who are “choosing” not to play. I tend to think all players want to play if they can do so safely, but why would you effectively punish a guy who is trying to protect his family, as opposed to a guy who is, himself, at a higher-risk? What if the first player has a high-risk spouse? Or kid? Or parent they live with? And what about the dramatically different service time implications for different types of players? How do you prevent players or teams from gaming things at a time like this?
• Yeah, suffice to say, this is another one of those serious issues where the league and the players will have to figure out the best possible approach, but it’s not going to be perfect across the board. Hopefully the default is simply: how can we proceed in the most kind and understanding way. And fans definitely need to give space and care to those players who opt out of playing. Strongly encourage folks to read Stark’s piece.
• Alex Rodriguez, who reportedly hopes to own a team at some point, comes out in favor of a 50/50 revenue split:
It’s time for owners and players to step up to the plate … together.
This is a huge opportunity for the game of baseball to take a huge leap forward and show leadership. We are in unprecedented times. pic.twitter.com/F8iMqTVyby— Alex Rodriguez (@AROD) May 16, 2020
• For all the reasons we’ve discussed before, a revenue-split looks like either a very bad deal for the players, or at least a very risky deal for the players. At a minimum, I don’t see how you could really even take a position on this in favor of a revenue split until you knew the players would indeed get a deep look at the books, as they’ve requested.
• Try for the rest of your life and you will never be 4% this badass:
Fergie establishing his authority on the mound. #CubsClassics pic.twitter.com/9lOSXoNafo
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) May 16, 2020
• A 3-D printer for 19% off at Amazon today? Intriguing. #ad
• Memories:
.@RealMikeWilbon talked about the impact Ernie, Billy & Fergie had on him as a kid. pic.twitter.com/DcqAomqSpD
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) May 13, 2020
• We had Ken Rosenthal on our podcast, which you can hear over at The Athletic, or you can always just subscribe wherever you get your podcasts:
https://twitter.com/TheAthleticCHI/status/1261395470770823168
• Stay tuned for this:
LeBron James' sports media company Uninterrupted producing docuseries on Astros cheating scandal.
— Yahoo Sports MLB (@MLByahoosports) May 15, 2020
Details ➡️ https://t.co/qh53LuoLij pic.twitter.com/N69Fb6cmUR
• The organ played, and for a few brief moments, things seemed as they should be:
The neighborhood has been a little quiet lately. We wanted to help with that. 🎶 pic.twitter.com/BoCtvUBRf4
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) May 15, 2020
https://twitter.com/obvious_shirts/status/1261439337146834944
Thank you @Cubs for bringing some life and hope back to our neighborhood 🙏 pic.twitter.com/9HGkl78c6g
— TuaTime (@themaz123) May 15, 2020
The sweet sound of organ music coming from Wrigley Field tonight! pic.twitter.com/CH14wc09SG
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) May 15, 2020
What a privilege to bring joy to Wrigleyville. The @Cubs knew that we needed to let people know Wrigley is still breathing. I was blessed to help ignite the life today. Thank you to all who hung around the ballpark, you are the real MVPs #gocubs— John Benedeck (@JohnBenedeck) May 16, 2020
