PHOENIX — Arizona Diamondbacks CEO Derrick Hall voiced his frustration over the latest round of failed lockout negotiations on Wednesday that led to more games being canceled.
Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred canceled 93 more games, appearing to close the remaining chance to play a full 162-game schedule and threatening locked out players with loss of salary and service time.
“Today’s news was very sad to me,” Hall told reporters. “We’re missing our first homestand. We’re going to lose home games. That’s a crushing blow.”
After the sides narrowed many economic differences and became bogged down over management’s attempt to gain an international amateur draft, MLB announced two additional series had been canceled through April 13.
That raised the total to 184 games wiped out from the 2,430-game regular season, or 7.6%. The gaps narrowed on the luxury tax, pre-arbitration bonus pool and minimum salary.
The news also pushes back Cactus League Spring Training, normally a massive draw for fans across the west coast and a boon for Valley businesses.
Many Arizona business owners rely on spring training for a major part of their yearly income. As opening day continues to be pushed back, the economic sting will deepen across the Valley.
While Hall is confident that a breakthrough will be made, he says a shortened training period is more than likely.
“We’re going to get out there, and they’ll be working real soon,” he said. “If it’s two and a half weeks, three weeks, or four weeks? Probably not.”
The biggest pain, however, is being felt by baseball fans, according to Hall.
“It’s not a good time for any of this. I’m sad by all of this,” he said. “We need to make sure we get back to the table. Enough is enough.”
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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