![]() ![]() Some said they’d head home immediately others said they would stick around the cities to see if anything got resolved. 11, though both union head Donald Fehr and owner rep Richard Ravitch would meet that night on CNN.ĭodgers fan Larry King served as the go-between.Įight teams had already played their final game a day earlier, leaving players unsure what was ahead. There were no scheduled talks between the two sides on Aug. Yet that’s exactly where it was all headed as neither side seemed in a rush to resolve their issues. MLBPA head Donald Fehr, left, and Major League Baseball's chief negotiator Richard Ravitch appeared on CNN's "Larry King Live" during the last night of the 1994 season. They were seeking leverage from the owners missing out on a payday from the postseason television contract - not to mention the damage that canceling the World Series would do to the game. 12 strike date had been selected judiciously as the players had already cashed a majority of their paychecks for the season. The players, meanwhile, were determined to ward off that attempt by damaging the owners’ bottom line as much as necessary. ![]() The owners were bent on fitting the union with a salary cap straitjacket they’d disguised as a bid for competitive balance. While labor issues had resulted in four stoppages over the previous 14 years, this fifth time loomed as the ominous final battle. “If it remains, there’s no point sitting in a room staring at each other.” ![]() “Really there’s no reason to have any meetings if the salary cap issue remains on the table,” Sprague said. ETĪs the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees prepared to finish their series at Yankee Stadium, Toronto players’ rep Ed Sprague showed how impassable the situation had become. No one knew for sure what would happen in the days and months ahead.Īnd because there were fans showing up and scores still being kept, no one was going to just mail the day in. Knowing what we know now, no one would have blamed Martinez for staying with his family an extra day and then letting the strike extend his paternity leave at the stroke of midnight.īut his return underscored two realities for the 20 teams who were scheduled to play on the season’s final day. He had a start to make against the Reds the next day. After flying back west for the birth, Martinez hustled back to Cincinnati on Wednesday night. Martinez’s daughter had been born a few days earlier in California. No, the cigars were for a much more common transaction. Yet Martinez and his co-workers were not celebrating the universal fortitude that would result in the cancelation of the first World Series in 90 years while also preserving their powerful union. A war chest of $175 million built from baseball card royalties was available to get them through whatever stoppage lie ahead. Major League Baseball players in 1994 were a united lot and they’d so far easily weathered the owners’ attempts to implement a salary cap. Hours before the most devastating strike in American sports history would begin, Ramon Martinez passed out cigars to teammates in the Dodgers clubhouse. (Paul Rosales/Yahoo Sports) Riverfront Stadium: Cincinnati 9 a.m.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |