Clock ticks down to MLB’s 1st work stoppage since 1995

By RONALD BLUM and STEPHEN HAWKINS
AP Baseball Writers

IRVING, Texas (AP) — The clock ticked down toward the expiration of Major League Baseball’s collective bargaining agreement at 11:59 p.m. EST and a likely management lockout ending the sport’s labor peace at 9,740 days over 26 1/2 years. Players and owners have appeared headed for a confrontation for more than two years. The union demanded change following anger over a declining average salary, middle-class players forced out by teams concentrating payroll on the wealthy and a share of veterans jettisoned in favor of lower-paid youth.