Giants, A's Fans Rejoice; Players Union Accepts MLB's Labor Deal Ending 99-Day Lockout
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF/AP) -- Anxious San Francisco Giants and Oakland A's fans breathed a collective sigh of relief Thursday after the players union voted to accept Major League Baseball's latest offer for a new labor deal, paving the way to end a 99-day lockout and salvage a 162-game regular season.
The union's executive board approved the agreement in a 26-12 vote, pending ratification by all players, a person familiar with the balloting said, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because no announcement was authorized.
MLB sent the players an offer Thursday and gave them until 3 p.m. to accept in order to play a full season. The union announced the player vote around 3:25 p.m. The deal was still pending approval by MLB's owners.
Among those who were hoping that a deal got down was Scott Morton, the owner of MoMo's, a popular gathering spot across the street from Oracle Park.
"We need this season, we need every single one of the 81 home games, and we need the Giants to play well," Morton said earlier this week. "There's nothing to hide. This season is very important."
His business needs baseball, so do his seasonal employees.
"Cooks, bussers, servers, bartenders -- a lot of those people come back season after season in anticipation of using this as a second job, using this as their primary source of income," he said.
The agreement will allow training camps to open this week in Florida and Arizona, more than three weeks after they were scheduled to on Feb. 16. Fans can start making plans to be at Fenway Park, Dodger Stadium and Camden Yards next month. Opening day is being planned for April 7, a little more than a week behind the original date on March 31.
The deal will also set off a rapid-fire round of free agency. Former Giants star Kris Bryant, Carlos Correa and Freddie Freeman are among 139 big leaguers still without a team, including some who might benefit from the adoption of a universal designated hitter.