Pedro Martinez Urges MLB Players And Owners To Reach Agreement For Fans
BOSTON (CBS) -- The month of June has begun, and Major League Baseball's players and owners do not appear to be any closer to an agreement to restart the sport than they did in March. In fact, the two sides appear to be farther apart now than they were back then.
As a result of the two parties failing to see the other side's case, MLB is risking the loss of the 2020 season entirely. That's something that Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez is eagerly hoping to avoid.
"Well, I'm hoping that both sides actually stop thinking about their own good and start thinking about the fans," Martinez told Mike Tirico on "Lunch Talk Live" on NBC Sports Network. "I think these are perfect times to have the baseball teams out there to have the people forget a little bit about what's going on. It's not only the pandemic -- it's everything that's going on. People need something to actually do and find a way to relax."
Martinez certainly made the most of his MLB career from a financial standpoint, and through that experience he shared that the economic side of baseball is "dirty" and "dark."
"I hope that the Players' Association and MLB realize how important it is to bring some sort of relief to the people," Martinez said. "And the economics -- which is the dark part of baseball. The business part of baseball is dirty. It's dark."
Nevertheless, the optimistic Martinez said he hopes that both sides can understand the unique situation and understand that it may be time to make a decision that is best for the fans above all else.
"I hope that they take into consideration who pays our salary, what the people do for us, how important the people are, and forget about -- a little bit, or at least bend your arm a little bit to try to find a middle ground for the negotiations. Let's not be selfish about it," Martinez said. "Let's think about the fans. Let's think about the families that are home that want to at least watch a baseball game and distract themselves from all the things that are going on."
