Top News:
Jeff Passan / ESPN:
Major League Baseball lockout appears imminent after negotiations end abruptly — IRVING, Texas — A lockout of Major League Baseball players appeared imminent after talks between the league and union ended after just seven minutes of negotiations Wednesday afternoon, less than 12 hours …
Discussion:
MLB.com, NBCSports.com, MLB Baseball News …, Brew Crew Ball, Bleacher Nation, NBC Boston, Pinstripe Alley and The Athletic
RELATED:
USA Today:
MLB lockout is on after collective bargaining agreement expires, owners agree to freeze out players — With Major League Baseball's collective bargaining agreement with the MLB Players' Association expiring at midnight Wednesday evening, the league's 30 owners voted to lock out players beginning Thursday …
Discussion:
New York Times, theScore.com, MLB Trade Rumors, Bloomberg, The Ringer and Wide Right & Natty Lite
Joon Lee / ESPN:
Advocates for Minor Leaguers forms steering committee to give players a voice, push for better conditions — NEW YORK — While the owners and Major League Baseball players intend to collectively bargain for the terms of their next agreement, one group will not be at the table during those discussions: minor leaguers.
Discussion:
CBSSports.com and Purple Row
Joon Lee / ESPN:
What we do in the shadows: Locked-out players play into MLB's scrubbed pages — NEW YORK — Within minutes of locking out players Thursday amid contentious negotiations on the next collective bargaining agreement, Major League Baseball scrubbed all remnants of player likenesses off …
Discussion:
Cubs Insider and New York Post
Jeff Passan / ESPN:
MLB, MLBPA fail to reach new labor agreement; league in 1st lockout since 1990 — IRVING, Texas — Major League Baseball locked out its players early Thursday morning, certifying the game's first work stoppage in more than a quarter-century after months of talks yielded little progress toward a new labor contract.
Discussion:
NBCSports.com, The Good Phight and The Athletic
Jesse Rogers / ESPN:
Major League Baseball, players union no closer to deal with collective bargaining agreement set to expire, sources say
Major League Baseball, players union no closer to deal with collective bargaining agreement set to expire, sources say
Bob Nightengale / USA Today:
MLB lockout: No more negotiations scheduled ahead of Wednesday night CBA expiration
MLB lockout: No more negotiations scheduled ahead of Wednesday night CBA expiration
Discussion:
MLB Baseball News …
Jesse Rogers / ESPN:
Everything you need to know about MLB's lockout
Everything you need to know about MLB's lockout
Discussion:
Kansas City Star, MLB.com, Twinkie Town, Dodgers Nation, Bless You Boys, Bleacher Nation, Cubs Insider, Viva El Birdos and CBS Los Angeles
Bradford William Davis / Insider:
Major League Baseball secretly used 2 different types of baseballs last season
Major League Baseball secretly used 2 different types of baseballs last season
Discussion:
Purple Row, MLB Trade Rumors, Bleacher Nation, Yahoo News, Marc Normandin …, Fish Stripes and FanSided
Alex Speier / The Boston Globe:
Milton's Rich Hill, Red Sox pair up again on free-agent deal — With Major League Baseball's clock ticking towards a midnight lockout by owners and a resulting transaction freeze, the Red Sox continued to bolster their rotation. According to a major league source, the team reached agreement …
Miami Herald:
Miami Marlins intent on adding another starting outfielder — Miami Marlins notes as we begin a lockout during which major-league player transactions are prohibited: — ▪ The Marlins began the offseason hoping to sign both Starling Marte and Avisail Garcia and pair them with Jesus Sanchez in the outfield.
Discussion:
Fish Stripes, MLB Baseball News … and FanGraphs Baseball
RELATED:
Toby Cudworth / 90min EN:
West Ham identify Nathan Ake as January transfer target — West Ham are interested in signing Manchester City centre-back Nathan Ake, with the club seeking cover for the injured Angelo Ogbonna, who is expected to miss the rest of the season. — The Hammers were dealt a major blow …
Discussion:
Sports Illustrated and Man City Square
MLB.com:
A note about our website content — You may notice that the content on this site looks a little different than usual. The reason for this is because the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the players and the league expired just before midnight on Dec. 1 and a new CBA is currently …
Discussion:
Royals Review, Pinstripe Alley, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, CBS San Francisco, The Spun, Bleacher Nation, Lone Star Ball and Twinkie Town
Matthew Roberson / New York Daily News:
It's impossible to take Rob Manfred and the owners seriously — Welcome to the Rob Manfred show. — For the foreseeable future, the only official public comments from Major League Baseball seem like they'll be filtered through Manfred, the commissioner who held a press conference on Thursday morning to officially welcome a lockout.
Discussion:
Pinstripe Alley
Associated Press:
Reliever Daniel Hudson returns to Dodgers on 1-year deal — LOS ANGELES (AP) — Right-handed reliever Daniel Hudson has returned to the Los Angeles Dodgers on a $7 million, one-year contract. — The Dodgers announced the deal Tuesday night for Hudson, who pitched in 40 games for Los Angeles in 2018.
Discussion:
True Blue LA
ESPN:
Source: Arizona Diamondbacks, MLB saves leader Mark Melancon agree to two-year, $14 million deal — Right-handed reliever Mark Melancon and the Arizona Diamondbacks agreed to a two-year contact on Wednesday, the team announced. — Terms were not disclosed, but a source familiar …