UPDATE (4 p.m. ET): Here is a statement from MLB commissioner Rob Manfred on today's developments.
--End of Update--
UPDATE (3:15 p.m. ET): Well, that escalated quickly.
Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association are nearing an agreement to play the 2020 season, MLB Network's Jon Heyman reports.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and MLBPA executive director Tony Clark met face-to-face in Arizona to work out both sides' differences, per Heyman, and it appears they made significant progress.
The Athletic's Evan Drellich offered a word of caution, however, noting MLB simply sent a proposal for the 2020 season to the union.
The MLBPA also confirmed the two sides haven't reached any agreement.
-- End of update --
Might Major League Baseball get out of its own way, after all?
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred and MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark had a "productive" face-to-face meeting Wednesday in Arizona about the 2020 season, MLB Network's Jon Heyman reported.
The New York Post's Joel Sherman confirmed Heyman's report, adding that Manfred and Clark also met Tuesday at Manfred's request.
That's not necessarily groundbreaking news, but it's notable considering Manfred and Clark hadn't even spoken since June 7 and have spent the past week involved in bitter negotiations via strongly-worded public statements.
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The latest statement came Monday night from Manfred, who admitted he's "not confident" MLB will have a 2020 season despite saying there would "100 percent" be a season days earlier.
MLB and its players have been unable to agree on pay, as owners want players to take another pay cut after already agreeing to prorated salaries back in March. According to Sherman, however, the league might be willing to budge for a 54-game season.
Time is of the essence for baseball to work this out, as Major League Soccer, the NHL and the NBA all are set to resume their seasons within the next two months. (The Boston Red Sox already were 74 games into their season at this point last year.)
If MLB wants to have a season worth watching and risk losing an already declining fanbase, it will need to translate Wednesday's meeting into an actual return-to-play plan that both sides can agree to.