New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole and other baseball players will be pushing for changes that make more teams competitive as they think about looming labor negotiations that could lead to a work stoppage at the start of 2022.
Many veterans who are not top stars have taken substantial paycuts in recent years. Others have turned down cuts and retired.
The players’ association is upset that some teams have lowered major league payroll in favor of rebuilding with youth, a process it calls tanking and that management defends as long-allowed refocusing on retooling for long-term gain. “For me, it just goes back to competitiveness,” Cole said Thursday. “We have a lot of great veterans that offer great entertainment, a quality style of baseball,