Bryce Harper supports Tampa Bay pitcher Blake Snell, who said he won’t play if MLB players have to take additional pay cuts should the 2020 baseball season eventually begin at some point.
As the league continues trying to figure out if it can begin competition this year amid the global coronavirus outbreak, it is expecting to lose a huge amount of revenue from the lack of ticket sales. So MLB owners proposed a 50-50 revenue split with the MLBPA for a shortened season they hope will start in July. However, that proposal would mean players would not be paid 100 percent of their contract per game this season.
The MLBPA is expected to reject that element of the proposal and cite an earlier deal from March that guaranteed players a prorated salary based on the number of games played, ESPN reported.
Snell, who’s in the second year of a five-year, $50 million contract, said recently while on a Twitch stream that taking the field for a reduced isn’t worth the risk, and he won’t do it.
While on his own Twitch stream Thursday, Harper agreed with Snell. The Philadelphia Phillies superstar was playing Fortnite and, per NBC Sports Philadelphia, he asked Phillies prospect Bryson Stott what Snell said about the 50-50 revenue proposal.
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When Stott relayed the gist of what Snell said Wednesday, Harper responded on the Twitch stream by saying:
“I love Snell. That’s my guy, bro. I love Snell. He ain’t lying. He’s right. Hey, he’s speaking the truth, bro. I ain’t mad at him. Somebody’s gotta say it. At least he manned up and said it. Good for him. I love Snell, man. Guy’s a beast too. One of the best lefties in the game.”
Although Harper clearly supports Snell’s position, the Phillies slugger didn’t go as far as saying he, too, would refuse to play under a 50-50 revenue sharing agreement.
Snell was set to earn $7 million in 2020, and he said the risk of playing right now or in the immediate future is “through the roof,” adding: “I’m not playing unless I get mine.”
The 2018 AL Cy Young winner said:
“I’m not splitting no revenue. I want all mine. Bro, y’all got to understand too, because y’all are going to be like ‘bro, Blake, play for the love of the game, man! What’s wrong with you bro? Money should not be a thing!’
“Bro, I’m risking my life. What do you mean it should not be a thing? It 100 percent should be a thing. If I’m going to play, I should be at the money I signed to be getting paid.”
After sharing his thoughts, Snell later clarified what he meant in text messages to the Tampa Bay Times. He said he realizes some will see his point of view as greedy, but MLB owners trying to cut their salaries more “is super frustrating because we have way more risk.”
“I mean, honestly, it’s just scary to risk my life to get COVID-19 (the disease caused by the coronavirus) as well as not knowing and spreading it to others,” he said via text. “I just want everyone to be healthy and get back to our normal lives, ’cause I know I miss mine!”
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