Players, owners go with (money) flow

DETROIT -- Former commissioner Fay Vincent looks at baseball issues from afar these days, either from his Connecticut home or, when the weather cools, from his Florida abode, where he'll be later this week.

He's no longer consulted on baseball matters, and is rarely invited to special events or baseball games, but, he said yesterday, he is limited physically by age (he's 68). His last assignment was to oversee a board of Negro Leagues experts to nominate ex-Negro League players and contributors for induction in the Hall of Fame.

But he follows the game, and the labor issues, very closely.

With a tentative five-year collective bargaining agreement reached yesterday and likely to be approved early this week, Vincent -- once involved in far more divisive labor issues (the 1990 player lockout) -- isn't surprised that baseball and the union were in harmony in achieving labor peace through 2011.

"It's great to hear that the sides are closing in," Vincent said. "It makes great sense to get something done before the agreement expires. The economics of the game are excellent -- attendance records were broken -- so there's no reason to make drastic changes. Both sides are making a lot of money. I think you have to be realistic that there's no sense in tinkering with what works."

Vincent said with neither side trying to roll back anything of substance, there's no reason an agreement shouldn't be in place.

The only issues for large-market teams like the Red Sox and Yankees are the threshold tax and revenue sharing by smaller market teams. Major League Baseball is certainly trying to make sure that if the Kansas City Royals are receiving $30 million, that $30 million goes back into the team in some way, whether it's free agency or boosting farm and scouting departments, and not lining owners' pockets.

"There are no salary cap issues, no major shift by the union. The union is still very much in control and as long as the owners are all right with that, they'll get along. I would think a big issue would be revenue sharing and the luxury tax to make sure those clubs benefiting with that spend their money on players," Vincent said.

One change being hashed out was the possible elimination or change in draft pick compensation for departed free agents. It would mean if, say, Oakland lost prize free agent Barry Zito, it wouldn't receive draft picks in return.

What this will do to the A's, and other teams who have built their farm systems with draft picks obtained when they have lost major free agents, is make them trade the player before the July 31 deadline or risk getting nothing in return except the salary relief.

There's also been a movement in which the signing of amateur draft picks would be slotted much like the NBA. Small-market teams currently stay away from players they deem too expensive, meaning those players tend to filter to bigger-market teams, who increasingly are giving top picks major league deals.

The negotiators were working out language yesterday and today in hopes of making the announcement tomorrow, when the World Series moves to St. Louis.

The game of baseball is good right now. Everyone's making money. MLB revenues could exceed $5 billion. Small-market teams are receiving revenue and can go out and make their own marketing and local radio and TV deals. There's a healthy rise in player salaries, but one that owners can handle with revenue from their increased attendance, national TV deals, and local revenue.

While a recent AP-AOL Sports poll indicated that only 32 percent of Americans are baseball fans, the game's popularity as reflected through attendance is high.

Maybe St. Louis vs. Detroit isn't the sexy matchup baseball would have hoped for, but to baseball purists, it's an intriguing matchup of fundamentally sound teams devoid of huge stars (other than Albert Pujols) and featuring two of the best managers.

The news buoyed players from the Tigers and Cardinals prior to Game 2, won by the Tigers, 3-1.

"That's great to hear," said former Red Sox pitcher Jeff Suppan. "That's great because we can go into the offseason not having to think about it."

The Tigers' alternate player representative, Curtis Granderson said he hoped the deal would be signed because he didn't want people thinking negotiations were all about the money.

"I think both sides know there's no point in dragging it out or putting it in the minds of the fans that this is a money issue," Granderson said. "As soon as you lock it up, it's a baseball issue, and people can look forward to coming back and watching baseball."

Vincent, who served as commissioner for three years after the death of A. Bartlett Giamatti Sept. 1, 1989, knows full well the angst among fans in 1990 when players were locked out of spring training. Thirty-two days after Vincent got involved, an agreement was reached.

Then, union head Donald Fehr feared owners would try to move for a salary cap. But a resolve was reached that included the appointment of a six-man panel to study the revenue sharing that is in existence today. Players went back to work, the start of the season was delayed a week, but a full slate of 162 games was played.

Granderson is right that these negotiations weren't all about the money, because nobody tried to take back much of anything or tried to win something. But, in reality, it was about the money.

The millionaires have no desire to mess up the free flow of money.

Nick Cafardo can be reached at cafardo@globe.com.