The MLBPA is having its own spring training, and signed players will show up for support

Even when the union tries to get organized and convince the league it is standing together against possible collusion and probable shenanigans, it doesn’t look united.

The latest reports on ongoing tensions between the union, unsigned players, and the league center around the idea of an alternative spring training. Boycotting spring training completely as a show of force isn’t going to happen, mostly because that would be officially classified as a strike and throw the entire current CBA into jeopardy. And while the entire CBA might be in jeopardy regardless, that upheaval happening so soon doesn’t seem to be in the cards right now.

So the union is planning on holding its own spring training camps to help unsigned players show off their talents and prep for the season, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. It will be held before actual spring training starts (which has a mandatory report date of Feb. 24) and players who actually have contracts will reportedly show up as a sign of support for those who are still negotiating or waiting for a team to call.

If the camp does go forward, it might not be filled with every player in the league still looking for work though. According to Jerry Crasnick, some players are fine working out on their own rather than traveling earlier than they need to a camp that isn’t being run by a team that’s paying them.

Some players might not stay home, but they might not go to the camp either. Clients of Scott Boras, who has been one of a few people speaking out against the league’s current actions (or inactions, as it were) won’t be attending the MLBPA’s camp but rather working out together. As Crasnick reports, Boras said of the possibility:

“Boras Corp. has two sport fitness institutes with diamonds, cages and weight facilities. We have resources and staffing to make sure our players are prepared when they reach agreements.’’

Besides Boras calling his own company “Boras Corp.” like he’s some kind of super villain promoting a new, life-changing product that everyone must buy and that he promises won’t backfire two years from now, that statement is a disappointing one.

Sure, those facilities may be just as good as IMG Academy’s facilities, where the union’s camp is taking place. It’s hard to imagine they can be any better than that, but they might be at least as good. The one marked difference is that players’ personal trainers will probably be able to attend Boras’ workouts.

But the entire point of the union doing this is so players can look united against the league and prove that they are doing fine on their own. Also, they want to show that if they remain unsigned (for whatever reason), they’ll be ready regardless of how long they wait for a deal; that they can do for themselves everything teams would be doing at traditional spring training.

Boras keeping all of his toys to himself rather than sharing with the class is a detriment to the union’s efforts (since it is finally actually making those efforts) to be united and support all unsigned free agents. But it’s also a bad look for his own free agents. If the top players silo themselves off to negotiate, it just looks bad. It shows the league that they remain fractured, and that if CBA strife does continue that everyone is not on the same page.

He may be the de facto leader of the pack this offseason based on the treasure trove of players he alone represents. But Boras is also trying to be the only face of a fight that by its nature has to have more than one person at the forefront of the problem.

One step forward, two steps back. The offseason continues.