NEW YORK – Players agreed to a deal with Major League Baseball that would preserve service time in the event this season is canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, a person familiar with the agreement told The Associated Press.
As part of the agreement Thursday night, management was given the right to cut the amateur draft in both 2020 and 2021. Management will advance $170 million to players in two stages, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because no announcement was made.
Teams are set to approve the roughly 17-page agreement Friday, the person said. Opening day originally was to have been Thursday but has been pushed back to mid-May at the earliest because of the virus outbreak.