With Major League Baseball’s collective bargaining agreement due to expire on Dec. 1, there have been rumblings that a potential work stoppage for the upcoming season is not out of the question.
A report from Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports added fuel to that fire on Tuesday, reporting that baseball’s owners are considering a lockout of players if a new collective bargaining agreement isn’t reached by the deadline.
Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow joined the Murph and Mac show on Wednesday morning, and denounced the rumors, saying the idea of a lockout is complete hogwash.
“There’s no chance there is going to be a work stoppage,” Krukow said. “Zero…It’s just not going to happen. There’s just not enough there to collectively unite a group of players to walk out. If you’re talking about compensation and A, B, and C type player ratings, that is not going to be enough to do it. The game is as healthy as it’s ever been, everybody’s making money. There is zero chance there is going to be a walk out.”
Professional baseball hasn’t had a work stoppage since 1994, that ultimately lead to the cancellation of the World Series, and had ramifications on attendance for many years after.
If a lockout was imposed by the owners, the consequences would be immediate, and would bring free agency to a halt. Krukow isn’t the only one skeptical of a potential work stoppage, with an unnamed source quoted in a report by John Harper essentially echoing Krukow’s opinion:
“There’s so much money in the game now for everyone involved that it would be unbelievably short-sighted to let something like that happen. I don’t think there are any issues that warrant such drastic action, and I believe this is really just a negotiating tactic as the deadline is nearing.”
Listen to the full interview below.