MLB players vote to end lockout and salvage season
(CBS News) -- After months of labor negotiations, Major League Baseball team owners and the players' union have agreed in principle to a new contract. Union leaders confirmed the agreement to CBS News on Thursday, but they noted that the deal still needs to be ratified. Once that's done, fans will get one step closer to seeing their favorite ballplayers on the field.
The Major League Baseball Players Association, or MLBPA, and team owners have been under a nearly 100-day lockout since last year. Players signed a five-year employment contract with the league in 2017, but that collective bargaining agreement expired on December 2. Since then, both sides have been arguing over a range of issues, chief among them being pay.
MLB generated a record $10.7 billion in revenue in 2019, according to Forbes. But that figure cratered to about $4 billion in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The average MLB player's salary in 2021 was $4.1 million, down almost 5% from 2019, according to the Associated Press.
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