Yesterday Tampa Bay Rays starter Blake Snell made a lot of news when he said that accepting further pay cuts to play in 2020 was not worth the risk. His specific words, among others: “Bro, I’m risking my life. What do you mean it should not be a thing? It should 100% be a thing. If I’m gonna play, I should be getting the money I signed to be getting paid . . . it doesn’t make sense for me to lose all of that money and then go play.”
A lot of people trashed Snell for that, saying that he was only motivated by money. Others defended Snell noting that, while he probably could’ve worded the sentiment better, the notion that ballplayers are the ones taking the risk, so they shouldn’t be asked to make even more concessions, was a valid one.
At least one big star has Snell’s back on that. Bryce Harper. Via NBC Philly:
Here are his full comments:
Yesterday Major League Baseball outlined a COVID-19 testing plan. Commissioner Rob Manfred also claimed that the game would lose $4 billion in 2020 playing without fans. The Major League Baseball Players Association has submitted “a slew” of requests for economic data which would back up that claim and any claim that players should have to take further pay cuts in order for the season to take place.