Cubs, White Sox Seasons Delayed As MLB Lockout Continues

CHICAGO — The Cubs and White Sox seasons will be delayed, along with the rest of Major League Baseball, after the players and owners could not come to a labor agreement Tuesday, continuing a lockout stretching into its fourth month.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced the first week of games is canceled in a Tuesday evening press conference in Florida. The canceled games are not expected to be rescheduled, and regular season games won't start earlier than April 7.

Spring training games won't start before March 12, the MLB said. The White Sox had been scheduled to face the San Francisco Giants Wednesday in a spring training game, while the Cubs would have played the Los Angeles Angels.

The White Sox were scheduled to open the regular season at home March 31 against the Minnesota Twins, while the Cubs were slated to play in Cincinnati the same day.

It's unknown how many games will be canceled before an agreement is reached.

It will be the first time baseball has missed games outside the pandemic since the 1994-95 strike, which included canceling the 1994 World Series. Before that, it was the 1981 strike.

Major League Baseball extended its deadline to reach an agreement with the Major League Baseball Players Association by one day before announcing games would be missed. MLB reportedly offered its "best" offer Tuesday afternoon, which the players rejected.

Among the major points of contention are the competitive balance tax, pre-arbitration bonus pools, minimum salaries of $700,000 and expanded playoffs.

The MLB Players Association issued a statement blasting the cancelation of the start of the season.

"Players and fans around the world who love baseball are disgusted, but sadly not surprised," the association said. "From the beginning of these negotiations, Players’ objectives have been consistent — to promote competition, provide fair compensation for young Players, and to uphold the integrity of our market system. Against the backdrop of growing revenues and record profits, we are seeking nothing more than a fair agreement."

The statement continued that "What Rob Manfred characterized as a 'defensive lockout' is, in fact, the culmination of a decades-long attempt by owners to break our Player fraternity. As in the past, this effort will fail."

The Cubs issued a message to fans noting that Opening Day is delayed, but did not comment on the lockout other than to say, "MLB is committed to finding common ground with the MLBPA to reach an agreement that avoids further harm to the 2022 season and strengthens and grows the game we all love."

But former Cub Anthony Rizzo spoke out on Twitter, saying, "To the fans we will miss you most. To the younger generation of baseball players, this is for you."

Mike Caraggi/Patch contributed to this story