Wire Taps: Washington Nationals reverse course on minor league stipends; MLB “mulls” shortened 2020 season + more...

ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan reported last night that Major League Baseball, “intends to propose a shorter season in which they would pay players a full prorated share of their salaries,” if the two sides can’t reach an agreement on how things should work to get baseball back in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

The latest update on negotiations on a potential 2020 campaign, Passan writes, comes after an MLBPA plan/response was delivered to MLB on Sunday night.

According to Passan’s sources, MLB believes that the agreement they reached with MLBPA reps in late March, which postponed Spring Training and the start of the 2020 regular season, gives MLB “[C]ommissioner Rob Manfred the right to deliver a season schedule after ‘good faith’ discussions between the league and the union.”

That plan, would suggest a season, “somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 regular-season games,” with the players receiving their full pro-rated salaries for those games, with things starting back up in July.

MLB, Passan notes, “does not intend to propose this to the player,” and views the plan as a, “... last resort in the event the parties can’t come to a deal.”

What do you think of that last-ditch attempt at a plan if the two sides can’t come to some sort of an agreement?

Go read your links...

NATS BEAT:

Nats reverse plans after Doolittle statement, will pay minor leaguers full stipend - (NBC Sports Washington)
"The Nationals reversed course Monday when the organization decided it will pay minor-league players under contract the full $400 weekly stipend originally agreed to across Major League Baseball in late March."

Max Scherzer, Sean Doolittle provide powerful voices during baseball’s search for answers - (NBC Sports Washington)
"Being prepared is his process in general. Before Doolittle dispatches a thread of tweets, he reads multiple background sources, formulates his thoughts, looks for spaces that may lack clarity when dispatched in public."

Nationals owners change course, restore $400 weekly stipends for minor leaguers - (WaPost)
"The Washington Nationals’ ownership group has reversed course and will pay the organization’s minor league players a $400 weekly stipend in June, multiple people with knowledge of the situation said Monday."

Nationals change course, will keep paying minor leaguers in full - (MASN)
"The Nationals’ intention to reduce the stipends given to minor leaguers from $400 per week to $300 per week throughout June was immediately met with a harsh reaction from the franchise’s own big leaguers."

Other Nats Stuff:

‘Upon further internal discussion’: Nats reverse minor league pay cut decision – (The Athletic)
"When word leaked out Sunday in The Athletic the Nationals would lower the minor-league stipends 25 percent — to $300 per week — for the month of June, members of Washington’s big-league team quickly assembled over Zoom."

MLB return: Will pending free agents choose to sit out 2020? - (NBC Sports Washington)
"The union proposed players deemed high-risk to play during the coronavirus pandemic could opt out of the season and still receive salary."

The Nats’ Doug Harris beat cancer three times. His fourth battle is during a pandemic - (WaPost)
"Right now, at this very moment, there’s an excellent chance Doug Harris is not just at home, like most of us, but at home in his bedroom, alone."

Callis says 2020 draft filled with quality college pitching - (MASN)
"MLBPipeline.com senior writer Jim Callis said the 2020 draft has a more quality pitchers than last year’s draft, and may be the best he has seen in quite some time."

NATIONAL(S) BEAT:

MLB considering 30-60 game season in union war - (NY Post)
"An MLB official briefed on the conversation Sunday says that the union did acknowledge that the March 26 agreement calls for further conversations about economic feasibility if games are played without fans."

NL EAST UPDATES:

Citing huge losses in revenue, Phillies make salary cuts - (NBC Sports Philadelphia)
"Projecting losses of 'substantially more than $100 million,' Phillies ownership on Monday instituted salary cuts for its top-earning employees."

Here's how Mets' projected win percentage stacks up against NL East foes - (SNY)
"With this shortened MLB season slowly coming together, Vegas Sportsbooks haven't missed a beat with projecting win percentages for 2020."

4 expendable players who are now important pieces for the Marlins - (Fish Stripes)
"One of the few advantages of being a rebuilding team like the Marlins is it lowers the expectations for the major league roster, freeing them to experiment with a bunch of different things, situations, players, and game strategies."

Atlanta Braves 2020 MLB Draft Preview: 3B - (Talking Chop)
"Third base seems like a position the Braves could use a pick on, but it doesn’t feel like one they have to use one of their limited picks on bases on both the current organization as well as this crop of prospects."