TAMPA, Fla. — Aaron Judge is ready, but like all the MLB stars that gathered with union executives Thursday afternoon at a Tampa Bay area hotel, the Yankee slugger is waiting to see if the league’ latest proposal will be enough to move them toward an end to the owner-imposed lockout.
“A lot more guys showed up than I expected. That was great and just looking forward to getting this thing done,” Judge said after the gathering of about 50 players sat through a two hour update from their negotiations team. “I think we’re all ready to go.”
The players meeting, one of three that were held over the past two days in Arizona and Florida, came just hours after the owners concluded their own quarterly gathering. Commissioner Rob Manfred wrapped that up by painting an optimistic picture of having time to make spring training and the regular season start on time. The owners agreed to a response to the union proposal which they will put forth on Saturday when the sides return to the table in New York City.
