Shortly after Major League Baseball submitted a proposal to the MLB Players Association, which included a request to delay the start of 2021 season, new New York Yankees right-hander Jameson Taillon says he took exception to the request for a multitude of reasons.
Taillon, who served as the MLBPA player representative for the Pirates before being traded to New York last month, joined CBS Sports' Fantasy Baseball Today podcast and provided some background regarding the communication between MLB owners and players in recent weeks.
"I know from a player perspective, we anticipated and expected the league to come to us with something back in October, November...December, even," Taillon. said "At a certain point as a player, you have to get ready to compete. For them to come to us now, this late into the offseason while guys have...I mean, the human aspect of it, guys have started shipping cars, booking Airbnbs for spring training, all that. But then from like the big-league ballplayer side of it, guys are ramped up. Guys are facing hitters. I was watching Tyler Glasnow pump 97 against hitters the other day. Now you're gonna ask him to ramp it back down and take a break? I just don't think that's right."
Indeed, the MLBPA officially rejected the request on Monday, and all expectations now are for the season to start on time.
You can listen to more of Taillon's interview with Fantasy Baseball Today below:
Taillon also mentioned he is "ready to roll" for spring training and for anything they throw his way after recovering from his second Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow. The former No. 2 overall pick (selected right after Bryce Harper and just before Manny Machado) has been limited to just seven starts since 2019, but detailed a new arm slot and mechanical adjustment that he believes will allow him stay on the field.
This is encouraging news for a Yankees team relying on a handful of arms to bounce back from injury to sure up their rotation, including Taillon, Luis Severino, and Corey Kluber.
