They took it right down to the wire, but disaster was avoided in November when Major League Baseball and the players association struck a new five-year labour agreement.
While talking the ins and outs of a CBA is an easy way to put a reader to sleep — the major changes were to the qualifying-offer system and luxury-tax thresholds — a number of interesting twists were revealed in the deal, including a few that will be very noticeable right from the get-go this year.
With Opening Day upon us, here are 10 things you need to know about the 2017 Major League Baseball season:
10—A repeat bid for the ages
The Chicago Cubs are World Series champions.