Update: Tues., March 1 — Major League Baseball has canceled the first two series of the 2022 season, after owners and the players association couldn’t reach a new collective bargaining agreement. This means that the Red Sox Opening Day series against the Tampa Bay Rays and the Baltimore Orioles series on April 4-6 have been canceled. View the Red Sox schedule here.
Hold on to your peanuts and cracker jacks — Red Sox fans might have to wait a little longer to take their seat at the Green Monster + sing “Sweet Caroline.”
Today is the first day of March, which normally means two things for baseball fans: spring training is underway + opening day is right around the corner. This year, things look a little different around the diamond.
Major League Baseball has been involved in a lockout for ~90 days and yesterday was the deadline, set by MLB management, to reach an agreement with owners and players.
Why was there a deadline to reach an agreement? The MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has determined that players need 28 days, or roughly four weeks, of practice prior to the first pitch of the season, if no deal was reached by the end of the day, then games would be canceled.
This isn’t the first time this situation has happened and America’s oldest pastime has been interrupted. The last time a regular season was impacted by negotiations was in 1995.
What does this mean for Red Sox fans?
Fenway Park is scheduled to host its first game on opening day, March 31. The 2022 season has 162 games scheduled and more than one could be impacted by the lockout.
For spring training, games scheduled through Mon., March 7 will not be played while a new agreement is negotiated.
Check out the current schedule here. Until it’s time to play ball stay tuned for updates on this ongoing conversation.
As of 10 p.m. on Monday night, a deal had not been announced, which means that opening day is still in limbo and both owners + players are in an ongoing conversation to reach an agreement.