Originally posted by: ElFenix
they also only lose 1 paycheck and screw the owners and fans out of the playoffs, which is one of the bigger money-getters for teams that are in it. it was easy to figure out that date.
Heh, yeah, they get their checks on the 15th and 30th. The baseball season is back-loaded for the owners, they stand to make a lot more money in August, September, and October. By striking now, the players have more leverage in negotiations.
If the owners were going to do a lockout, they'd do it early, like spring training or April, when it stands to hurt the players the most and make them miss the most paychecks.
Since most fans don't distinguish between lockout and strike and just point at the "greedy players" when there's a work stoppage, I suppose the players union figured they didn't have much to lose by making the first move.
I think it's stupid that they can never agree on things before this happens.