MLB commissioner Rob Manfred penned a letter to fans after announcing Opening Day would be delayed and several regular season games will be canceled after a collective bargaining agreement could not be reached by the league-imposed deadline.
“I want to assure our fans that our failure to reach an agreement was not due to a lack of effort on the part of either party. The Players came here for nine days, worked hard and tried to make a deal. I appreciate their effort,” Manfred wrote. “Our committee of Club representatives committed to the process, offered compromise after compromise, and hung in past the deadline to exhaust all efforts to reach an agreement.