MLB owners appear to once again be taking a stand this
offseason against handing out massive long-term contracts to star free agents,
and one veteran player is convinced the practice is going to eventually result
in a work stoppage.
Longtime St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright said
Friday that he is “100 percent” certain there is going to be a strike if MLB
owners don’t show more of a willingness to pay players. The 37-year-old said
he’s concerned it could happen in the middle of a season.
Wainwright went on to criticize owners for placing too much
emphasis on analytics and placing everything in a “sabermetric box” without
taking intangibles into consideration.
The biggest issue, of course, is whether or not team owners
are working together to keep the price of free agents down. That would be
collusion, which is illegal. However, there’s a good chance officials have
simply realized there’s no need to be paying a player like Albert Pujols $28
million when he’s 39 and batting .245.
Wainwright is not the only
veteran player who has gone off about free agency recently, but
it doesn’t seem like a change is coming anytime soon. In all likelihood, Bryce
Harper and Manny Machado are going to get less money than they were seeking.
While that could be the result of collusion, it could also be that teams are
getting wiser.
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