Morning Mound Visit: Deal not made before arbitrary deadline

A deal for a new CBA was not made before MLB’s imposed deadline of February 28, but enough progress was made to push the deadline back to 5 p.m. EST today. Yesterday, Evan Drellich reported that MLB was prepared to cancel at least a month’s worth of games if an agreement couldn’t be reached.

Nothing is official yet, but reports are that the new CBA will include expanded playoffs and could impose restrictions on defensive shifts. MLB is pushing for a 14-team playoff format while the players are trying to hold at 12 teams. According to Bob Nightengale, the two sides agreed on 12 teams, but remain far apart on the luxury tax threshold, minimum salary, and the pre-arb bonus pool.

Also of note, the players dropped their proposal to expand arbitration eligibility for players with at least two years of service time. Still, the owners are reluctant to raise the pre-arb bonus pool beyond $20 million.

Ely Sussman | Fish Stripes: Derek Jeter’s time as CEO of the Marlins has come to an end. The Captain and the team mutually agreed to part ways after four seasons. General manager Kim Ng will likely take on greater responsibilities.

Ben Clemens | FanGraphs: While the owners and commissioner insist that running a baseball team is a risky endeavor and no better than investing in the stock market, none except Atlanta actually open their books and prove it. Except Atlanta made a boat-load of cash in 2021.