Category: That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: MLB Union to Vote No on 60 games

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cleveland.com file photo: MLB Player Rep Tony Clark (left) said the players wanted a ten game bump up from 60 games to 70 games. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred (right) rejected the union’s latest proposal saying he told Clark not to increase the amount of games from 60 in last week’s one on one meeting

MLB: Union to Vote No on 60 games

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

Around and around it goes, where it stops, nobody knows! Today the MLPA is expected to vote NO to the 60 games season proposed by MLB/Owners. This means, Commissioner Rob Manfred will probably order a 50-game season (as the March 26 agreement stipulates) and plus that will give the players union the option to file legal documents against Major League Baseball/Owners. For negotiating in ‘bad faith’, for a starters.If you are or know an attorney, they might explain this fiasco with much clarity.

The package rejected was the 60 games proposed by the owners by the Commissioner that would have began the season July 19-20 and ended September 29th. The season still very much at risk with the rise of Covid-19 cases, with the Philadelphia Phillies and Toronto Blue Jays reporting players and staff also contracted the virus, and teams closing their practicing facilities.

This script follows to a “T”the movie “Groundhog Day”

Stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Museum and does News and Commentary each http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: MLB Saturday is the 100th Day without Baseball

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photo from millcreeksports.com:

MLB Saturday is the 100th Day without Baseball.

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

If this saying is accurate, we have nothing but losers so far during this negotiations between owners and players. “In any negotiation, the one who first gives a number is the loser”. Both sides have been throwing number(s) for amount of games they wish to play.

“You must never try to make all the money that’s in a deal. Let the other fellow make some money too, because if you have a reputation for always making all the money, you won’t have many deals.” – J. Paul Getty

He was once one of the richest men in the world, American-born oil billionaire who was very frugal. So much, that he once negotiated with some low life characters who were the kidnappers of his own grandson.

The current negotiations between these two sides trying to resolve this impasse in baseball have a turbulent history. It is almost like a couple that has lived together for decades, marrying and divorcing and re-marrying and divorcing. Kind of a crazy relationship, but it is what it is.

Yesterday the players union proposed a 70 game season, just a few hours later it was rejected by the owners, represented by Commissioner Rob Manfred..

We are left this weekend in sort of a limbo waiting for some news. The Commissioner still have by decree the nuclear option, that to order a 50 game season, to start at a specific day.

If and when a deal is finally reached and both sides have it totally approved, the person that will make the announcement will be Rob Manfred. That is his job and history will judge him for his leadership or lack off during this wild 2020.

In the meantime, stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Museum located at the Oakland Coliseum and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsadioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: MLB Players Proposed 70 games instead of 60

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred proposed a 60 game schedule and the players union is asking for 70 games the baseball is in the owner’s court now as the players wait for MLB’s decison (New York Times file photo)

MLB Players Proposed 70 games instead of 60

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

A day after the owners proposed a 60 game season beginning July 19 and ending September 29, the players union today made a counter-proposal according to ESPN this is what it calls for:

-70 game season from July 19 to September 30. -$50 million in playoff bonuses -50/50 split of new postseason TV revenues in 2021 -Universal DH -Forgiveness of salary advance for Tier I-III players -Mutual waiver of grievance

This should probably fly, but with these two sides never bet anything.

Stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for the Oakland A’s on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: MLB 60 Game Proposal Looking Good

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yahoo.sports.com file photo: MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred (left) and MLB Players Association Rep Tony Clark (right) met for a one on one discussion to bring baseball back on Wednesday

MLB; 60 game Proposal looks Promising

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

After Commissioner Fred Mandfred for the owners and Tony Clark,representing the players Union met in Arizona on Tuesday.

“The owners are 100% committed to getting baseball back on the field,’’ Manfred says.

Says Clark: “The players want to play.’’

The new proposal is from the MLB/owners going to the MLPA/players, is to play a 60-game season in 70 days with prorated salary to the players and an extended playoff. The season would begin,(if this is approved) around July 19.

So far, looks like booth sides are in agreement (at least)to formally submitting this for an approval or rejection.

So if you are exhausted about this, that is normal, but this story, even if they play, would not end, because we have an unpredictable Pandemic going on, and at the end, that might be the “wild card” with cases currently spiking all around the country.

Stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury is the Spanish radio voice for the Oakland A’s on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary weekly at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast: Manfred puts doubt on baseball’s return; The latest on the season shortened or put off

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred now says that baseball might not return at all after the owners have offered a 50 game season to the players which was rejected (yardbarker.com file photo)

On That’s Amaury’s podcast:

#1 How huge is it that baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred would say that he’s not sure if there will even be a baseball season in 2020?

#2 Supposing baseball is canceled for the 2o20 season will the damage be as bad as it was like the strike shorten 1994 season?

#3 Owners want to limit the salaries they pay and the players are looking for a full prorated pay, if this negotiating to get the ball rolling by mid July is a sampling of whats to come in next season’s collective bargaining you could be assured the game is in danger.

#4 Rob Manfred is known as a Commissioner who likes a challenge and taking on the players union head on in a situation like this will get the idea across and is known for his attack dog style.

Join Amaury Pi Gonzalez each week for That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: MLB Commissioner Not Sure of a Season

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Major League Baseball Players Association representative Tony Clark said the latest offer from the owners of 72 games and cuts in player salaries was unacceptable on Sunday (USA Today file photo)

MLB Commissioner: Not Sure of a Season

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

Last week Commissioner Rob Manfred said “100 percent is going to be a season”. Today after his weekly conference call with the 30 owners said he was “not very sure we will have a season”. According to Manfred the league doesn’t want to open a season with the risk that the union could file multi-billion dollar grievance saying that MLB did not act in good faith to play as many games as possible this year. With the Covid-19 situation players could choose not to report for work.

The Commissioner lacks the ownership votes to open the season. MLB/owners after they rejected the 72-game proposal by the MLPA this past weekend, and after the union told the owners they are “done” negotiating, and told them to “go and set a schedule”, the players now do not seem to want to go any further.

This is what the Commissioner told ESPN today. “I had been hopeful that once we got to common ground on the idea that we were going to pay the players full prorated salary that we would get some cooperation in terms of proceeding under the agreement that we negotiated with the MLBPA on March 26th. Unfortunately, over the weekend, while Tony Clark was declaring his desire to get back to work, the union’s top lawyer was out telling reporters, players and eventually getting back to owners that as soon as we issued a schedule — as they requested — they intended to file a grievance claiming they were entitled to an additional billion dollars. Obviously, that sort of bad-faith tactic makes it extremely difficult to move forward in these circumstances.”

Commentary: Many epitaphs will be written about MLB 2020, I believe it will be remembered as the weird year where greed killed the game, suicide by the numbers. Nobody was arguing about a $15 per-hour salary here, in a game where the owners can make billions in television deals and a rookie makes around $563,500 per-season, and the rest of the country is struggling in many ways with 30-40 million unemployed, many will lose their jobs and businesses forever, this was as ridiculous as it could get.

Unless there are last second surprise(s), the great Lon Simmons would say today about the 2020 season: “Tell it goodbye!”

Stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for A’s baseball on the A’s Spanish radio flagship station 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: 1971 Pirates First All Black and Latino lineup

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blogspot.com file photo: 1971 Pittsburgh Pirates who defeated the San Francisco Giants in the NLCS to advance to the World Series and the Bucs defeated the Baltimore Orioles for the Championship

1971 Pirates First All Black and Latino lineup

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

On September 1, 1971 the Pittsburgh Pirates fielded the first all-black and Latino line-up.

Rennie Stennett (second base) Panamá, Gene Clines (center field)USA (Bay Area native), Roberto Clemente (right field), Puerto Rico Willie Stargell (left field) USA, Manny Sanguillen (catcher) Panamá, Dave Cash (third base) USA, Al Oliver (first base) USA, Jackie Hernandez (shortstop) Cuba, 2019 Opening day rosters included players from the United States, Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Cuba, Puerto Rico México, Canada, Japan, Curacao, South Korea, Brasil, Colombia, Panamá, Aruba, Germany.

Honduras, Australia, Honk Kong, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan. Five teams have the most players born outside the US: Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Cuba, Puerto Rico and México.

Today about 7. 7% of all Major League Baseball players are African-American and close to 29% are Latinos/Hispanics. In the country (total population) As of July 2019 Hispanics/Latinos made 18.3 percent of the total population, Black/African-Americans 13.4 percent. When it comes to African-American participation in the big three professional leagues in the US, baseball still way behind the NBA and the NFL. In the NBA 75% while in the NFL 68% are African-Americans.

Arizona Diamondbacks all-star outfielder Adam Jones fills in on his belief in this detachment between blacks and baseball. “The decisions made in baseball are white made decisions. The league has experimented with various rule changes to speed up pace of play and reach younger fans, but the racial politics of baseball are the most in need of an update,” claims Jones. Simply put, Jones feels the league can do a better job connecting with African-American social issues as the other sports have made a priority.

The MLB (RBI) Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities is sponsored by Major League Baseball and it is designated to promote the game to teenage boys and girls in disadvantaged areas. The RBI Program is in partnership with the Boys & Girls of America.

Note: This year (in progress) the 2020 US Census started in April 1 and will conclude in December.

Stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Heritage Hispanic Museum located at the Oakland Coliseum and Catch That’s Amaury’s podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: MLB Players Reject Proposal – It’s Manfred’s Time!

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and the owners 72 game proposal was rejected by the players as the odds of a 50 game season is the most likely scenario (AP photo)

MLB: Players Reject Proposal – It’s Manfred’s Time!

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Major League Players Union rejected the latest proposal by the MLB owners from yesterday this afternoon which called for a 72-game season at 70 percent pay with a chance to get is as high as 83 percent of their pay if postseason is concluded.

Players told MLB/Commissioner Rob Manfred today to set-up the schedule. This more than likely would mean the 48 to 50 games “season”that I have written about recently on this site. When Manfred said recently he guaranteed 100 percent a season, he was talking about this last resort of around 50 games.

When people don’t talk to each other, things do not work out the way they should through these “negotiations” both sides owners and players have just shot down each others proposals. With such quick response from the players it is obvious that each side mistrusts each of other rules the day. As expected the MLPA rejected it.

There are reports they even have shut down their Zoom accounts. Zoom is a video-audio-conferee chat (not in person) platform where it allows people to communicate from different locations.

As mentioned before, Commissioner Rob Manfred, who recently guaranteed there will be a season, can set a schedule and by decree the power to start the season. Not only the economic, health and security of the players are at risk but the whole 2020 season.

The Commissioner is very close to doing a”Pontius Pilate” washing his hands from this mess and ordering a 48 to 50 games season, that’s very possible scenario (the last one left) then the MLPA can file grievance. Players might not even show up in that case, the cloud of health and security for them is paramount since after all we still are inside a Pandemic.

Remember the owners do not take the field and are not under the same danger of contracting Covid-19 as the players. So we have to be fair here, in this cold war called baseball.

If Manfred orders 48-50 games: There are at least six owners that prefer not to play at all this year. That has a lot to do with the Commissioner selecting the last option of 50 games,the smallest amount, so players get paid less.The players feel betrayed and see the owners trying to pay them less and therefore not abiding by the March 26 agreement.

The Commissioner is chosen by a vote of the owners of the teams. Rob Manfred assumed office on January 25, 2015. This by far has been the biggest challenge for Mr.Manfred who is the CEO of baseball and rules over all the important things in the game.

Like any Commissioner he would like to leave a good legacy someday and I am sure the year 2020 was not what he had envisioned. Not to mention there is a collective bargaining agreement expiring after the 2021 season. But to be fair to the Commissioner had anybody alive in this world could have predicted this 2020 so far?? I do not think so, unless Nostradamus just resuscitated and was back in business.

Stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the play by play talent for Oakland A’s radio at 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

 

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: MLB Commissioner “100 percent” There Will Be A Season

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Washington Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer who sits on the Major League Players Association negotiating board said the owners proposal to cut players salaries a second time and order to play 50 or less games is unacceptable (msn.com file photo)

MLB Commissioner “100 percent”There Will Be A Season

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

During an interview with the MLB Network and also with ESPN, Commissioner Rob Manfred said is “100 percent” that a 2020 season will take place.

1-What he said: He hopes a settlement between both sides, owners and players union is reached.

2-How: Under the current rules. He would mandate a structure of the season, if both sides cannot come to an agreement. The March 26 accord gives the Commissioner the power to implement a season as long as the negotiations are in “good faith * The “good faith”part is a matter of interpretation, both sides alleged they’re negotiating in good faith.

3-Bottom Line: If these negotiations cannot come to a conclusion with an amicable agreement Manfred would implement a regular season of 48 to 50 games.

On Tuesday: The players union responded to MLB/owners plan with an 89 game season of their own. But an executive from the owners was quoted as saying “We’re nowhere” -after the players proposal was submitted. This season-proposal would have run from July 10 to October 11 with postseason into November. But MLB wants to avoid this, because(potential second COVID-19 wave)as well as new broadcast deals. Included was a $5 million fund for minor leagues players and social justice organizations.

Conclusion: Commissioner Rob Manfred is fighting the clock, if both sides run the clock and do not come to an agreement, the only feasible solution for a “season”will be for him to implement the 48 to 50 games option. Considering we are close to the middle of June(this was the time for Spring Training part two) and for season to begin on July 4, but this is now out of the question.

Stay well and stay tuned.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Museum and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: MLB The Clock Is Now the Umpire

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred shown here at the Yahoo Finance All Markets Summit in New York stands with the owners proposal to start a 76 game season which the players are opposed to   (sports.yahoo.com)

MLB: The Clock Is Now the Umpire

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

With all the back and forth during these negotiations, there is no doubt the Clock is now THE factor. After the players union proposed an 89-game season with full prorated pay at the end of Tuesday, which was quickly brushed aside by the owners.

Get ready for either: 1) A 50 games season or 2) No season at all. Both sides do not want to play a regular season past the September 27th date; one of the few things that have been mutually agreed during this negotiating exercise. Anything after that would land the playoffs into November and both sides are afraid that going into the winter the Covid-19 “wild card” could show-up.

Commissioner Rob Manfred can implement a schedule and the players are required to show up. We are dangerously closing-in on that final decision, a 50 game season, which will guarantee the players with prorated salaries, which is exactly what the players last proposed and agreed among themselves they would accept, but the players want more than 50 games, because they will get paid more.

At the end a 50-game schedule might be the best they are going to get. However, if this is adapted and the season comes down to 50 games, this could have serious repercussions for the future negotiations after the 2021 season, the CBA (Collective Bargaining Agreement) labor agreement that is on the agenda.

A 50-game season could risk the perception by the public that they are just playing for the money (with playoffs which is the big revenue producer) during a time where a lot of people are unemployed and struggling, because of the Covid-19 closures all over the country, although most States are re-opening and getting their economies back on track. Regardless what happens this year, MLB is headed for a bumpy ride in 2021.

The 2020 Baseball season is running out of options. The Clock, which is non-negotiable, is now dictating what might, might be a last effort decision to save the season. If you call a season 50 games.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Oakland A’s Spanish play by play announcer on 1010 KIQI San Francisco and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com