Genuine Question Regarding the Lockout
posted by u/New-Row7111 · 2026-10-21 23:27 UTC
Hey everyone, I know the lockout is a huge talking point for the 2027 and I’m sure this sub gets more than its fair share of posts regarding this but I wanted to ask a question I’ve been thinking about recently especially in the event we only play a partial season.
If we end up playing games next year in the form of a shorter season (whatever that number may be). Will the MLB be forced to reconstruct each team’s schedule?
I ask this because if divisional games hold more leverage especially being a huge factor in tiebreakers for playoffs and seeding, it will be hard to tell how many divisional games will be left off of each team’s schedule if they simply just omit the first “x” games on each schedule.
I haven’t done the research in full depth yet but let’s say 40-ish games come off the schedule and we only play 120-ish game season; a team like the Reds could have lost 15 divisional games while the Cubs could have only lost 6.
I’m not sure how they’ve handled this in lockouts past because interleague played didn’t exist in 1995 when the season was shortened to 144 games and the 2022 lockout had all of the missed games made up at the end of the year, so that problem never came up. Will they just make up a temporary scenario?
Curious to know thoughts on this.
## Top comments
1. u/AutoModerator · 2026-10-21 23:27 UTC
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2. u/AdviceGlass3400 · 2026-10-21 23:31 UTC
2020 would probably be your best example. I think they came out with a new schedule that year, but I can’t remember for sure
3. u/DickBottalico · 2026-10-21 23:37 UTC
2022 was delayed a week, and they kept most of the schedule intact except for the beginnings and ends if i recall
4. u/AdviceGlass3400 · 2026-10-21 23:39 UTC
Yeah which is why I said to look at 2020, the asterisk covid year, since it went all the way down to 60 games or so
5. u/New-Row7111 · 2026-10-21 23:53 UTC
You’re correct yes, but a lot of that schedule was made up to limit traveling with the CDC guidelines in order. They also did an expanded playoff format too since they only played a third of a season
6. u/tearsonurcheek · 2026-10-22 00:12 UTC
Yeah. Only 60 games that year.
7. u/1984DanMarino · 2026-10-21 23:43 UTC
Every lockout in every sport is a little different. Wikipedia search the 05’ NHL lockout and both the early 10s lockouts for the NFL and NBA. Media pressure is going to play a major role in what happens and my guess is the people throughout the MLB will remember how bad 94’ was for the sport and work to avoid it at all costs.
8. u/Patrick42985 · 2026-10-22 00:05 UTC
I would use the 1999 nba season or the 2013 nhl season as reference points.
Both seasons had significant games missed but still allowed for enough games to where the final schedule ended up being more than half of a normal schedule.
In the NHL case teams only played games within their conference that season. In the NBA season they winged it more. Not everyone played everyone and there was an imbalance. I would expect them to wing something on the fly if significant time is missed but they’re still able to play some sort of season. I wouldn’t be surprised if the schedule makers have planned some stuff in advance in anticipation of that.
All that being said. I think mid June is the cutoff point for them to reach a deal in hopes of starting 4th of July weekend at the latest. Hopefully something gets done much sooner. But once the NBA and Stanley Cup finals wrap up in June. All focus is going to be on MLB to get something done when that 2.5 month gap between the end of the nba/nhl season and nfl season starting hits where MLB has the spotlight to themselves all summer.
9. u/DigitalMariner · 2026-10-22 00:06 UTC
They will definitely redo the schedule.
How severely and the exact mechanics of it will depend on how long the lockout goes for. The plans for a lockout that ends in late March are very different from one that ends in June.
I would not make any plans based on the current released schedules.
10. u/Pleasantville17 · 2026-10-22 00:12 UTC
Here's an Idea... Billionaire owners and millionaire players. Sit together in a fucking room and hash it out so there is no reason for a work stoppage on either side. Nobody is losing money here.... for fucks sake.
11. u/TheSocraticGadfly · 2026-10-22 00:27 UTC
If it's a week or so delay, they may keep the sked and just push it back. Maybe up to two weeks. They'll also shorten spring training.
More than that, yeah. That said, with odd-number leagues, you can't target interleague for cutting.
But, they will have their scheduling computers spit out something.
12. u/2SwordsMcLightning · 2026-10-22 00:37 UTC
If the season doesn’t start on time then yes, they will have to change the schedule. The only way to stick to the current plan is to stick to the current plan- which doesn’t look like it’s gonna happen.
If it’s a small delay, like 2022, maybe they just reschedule the first two weeks of the season to then become the last two weeks of the season, or whatever.
If it’s a longer delay where they start getting into reduced games territory, like 2020, then yeah, they’ll have to rework the schedule and figure out how many games to play against each opponent.
The lockout is all but guaranteed. How long it will last is the real question. And if there is any baseball at all next year (which I think there will be at some point, just not as it is currently scheduled), then they will have a temporary one year work around. If they have to make a specific shortened season for 2027, then they’d make sure to work out any potential playoff and tie breaker implications before they even throw the first pitch.
13. u/drlavkian · 2026-10-22 01:31 UTC
i'm so upset that the lockout is a thing the players just have to accept. fucking billionaire assholes inflicting violence on regular people.
14. u/Whatumacallit0 · 2026-10-22 01:42 UTC
Fuck baseball if they have a lockout, a bunch of millionaires and billionaires whining over how to split the money ultimately it’s us the fans that get screwed in the end with $10-$15 beers and overpriced crappy food, if they don’t work it out I’m done with baseball
15. u/DunderMifflinBuffalo · 2026-10-22 00:52 UTC
I heard that at least 4 to 6 players have told 8 to 11 of my secret sources that the players will not play next year if they miss games and the owners insist on divisions. They're aiming for a shortened division less season where homeruns count as 3 runs and if a pitches strikes out the side he keeps pitching until he doesn't get a strike out. That's right, if The Miz struck out the first 3 batters in the bottom of the 4th the clean up hitter would come up, if he gets out they will only have 2 outs the following inning to work with. If he strikes out the next hitter comes to the plate.
We will see if those 3 to 9 players have a real voice in the union or not.