After 99 days of a deep freeze in baseball, owners and players were finally able to reach agreement on Thursday on a new five-year labor agreement that will ensure a full 162-game schedule this season. But what’s in the deal, and how will it affect the Royals? Let’s take it one issue at a time.
Minimum wage
The players will get an increase in the minimum wage from $570,500 last year to $700,000 this year, with increases to $780,000 by 2026. Players had asked for $715,000 because the minimum wage in baseball has not kept up with the minimum wages in other sports, but this is still a substantial 23 percent increase.