MLB is in a difficult position. Momentum has been trending in the right direction over the past few years as interest in the sport seems to be growing. However, the potential of a lockout is looming as MLB and the MLBPA do not seem to be close to agreeing to a solution to the league's salary cap desire. A lockout would unquestionably be a detriment to baseball's momentum. The good news is that Jeff Passan of ESPN believes baseball will be played in 2027 — it just remains to be seen when the season will start given the seemingly inevitable lockout.

“Yes,” Passan responded when asked if baseball will be played in 2027, via John Fanta of NBC Sports. “We will see baseball in 2027. When will we see baseball? That's a question that I don't have the answer to… I'm not trying to, like, avoid the question. I think a lot of it depends on what happens December 2nd and beyond, after the lockout, which I think is an inevitability at this point.”

There was a fairly similar situation in 2022 when MLB and the MLBPA were working toward a new collective bargaining agreement. While there were differences in opinion then, this year's new CBA discussions seem to have a greater chance of leading to a longer lockout given how different both sides seem to feel about a salary cap.

Article Continues Below

There's more to both sides' argument, but to summarize, MLB has argued that a salary cap would level the playing field while the MLBPA is concerned that a salary cap would limit how much money players can make. Players want to ensure they are being paid fairly while the league wants to give every team an equal chance to sign the best players in free agency.

The momentum for baseball is real, so the shorter the lockout the better. Or, if they can somehow avoid a lockout (which seems highly unlikely), that would be ideal.