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CNN Live Today

With First Game Hours Away, Baseball Talking Strike

Aired August 30, 2002 - 10:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: It has been all talk and no action as major league owners and players lob proposals their back and forth and the fans are caught in the middle and are growing increasingly sour on the whole deal. Let's get the deal now from the boardroom and the ballpark.
CNN's Chicago bureau chief Jeff Flock is outside Wrigley Field. That's going to be the first game of the day, today, that would be the first one to be canceled.

Also joining us is CNN sports reporter, Josie Karp, who is in New York, trying to peek inside those closed-door meetings.

Let's start with you, Josie. What's the word. What's the latest you're hearing there?

JOSIE KARP, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: From my perspective, talking is action here. And they are talking right now here in this building behind me -- is Major League Baseball headquarters. And sources say right now there is a meeting going on. Each side has three people in a meeting room. The union has Don Fear; Steve Fear, his brother; and Michael Weiner, another attorney. For ownership, it is the two lead negotiators: Rob Manfred and Bob DuPay and commissioner Bud Selig. In another room -- earlier, about an hour ago -- we saw some players and another union negotiator, Gene Orza, come into this building -- so Gene Orza, Tom Glavin and BJ Surhoff are in another meeting off to themselves.

And what exactly they're talking about, we don't know what they are saying. But we know the last two issues still needing to be resolved involve the fourth year of the luxury tax, and also the termination date of this four year agreement. From what we have been told from sources, they have obviously come to an agreement on drug testing; that happened earlier in the week. The most recent developments concern contraction and revenue sharing. As far as we know, if this deal gets done without a strike, those two issues are also closed. They have agreed on the amount of revenue sharing, and they have also agreed that the owners, for the life of this agreement, agree not to contract. But the union agrees not to stand in their way after the four years of this agreement.

So exactly what they are saying, Leon, we cannot tell you. But it looks like there might be some sort of resolution, some sort of break through coming very soon.

HARRIS: Josie, we are wondering whether or not any kind of breakthrough can come soon enough without resulting in the cancellation of any game today. As a matter of fact, we want to show viewers who are watching right now, we have got a camera situated outside of Fenway Park. You see there a couple of Gray Line busses that are supposed to be taking the players to the airport because the Sox are supposed to be playing Cleveland -- isn't that right, Josie?

KARP: That's right.

HARRIS: If they are going to play today, they have got to get moving sometime fairly soon. We are watching to see, to get some sort of indication, as to whether or not a deal is ever going to reached.

KARP: I think it's good to keep an eye on that. Remember, Boston and Cleveland are not that far apart. They are in the same time zone. They can get there, they can still play.

HARRIS: That's true.

Good deal. Thanks, Josie.

As we keep our eye there on Fenway Park and the busses parked there, let's go check now on Jeff Flock, in Chicago.

JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We are looking for signals out here too, Leon. In fact, a positive one right now. Perhaps you see right behind me, we came over to the ticket window: You see the open signs? I got to believe that is a good sign. They are now selling tickets to today's game.

And we asked earlier if there were still tickets available. I will ask this lady one more time.

Are there still tickets available to today's game? Could I buy a ticket?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, you can.

FLOCK: I still can. Again, I am going to wait before I buy one, but thank you very much.

Indeed, a positive sign.

Also, out here, not too far from the players' parking lot, so that is something that also may give us some indication, because obviously, the clock is ticking.

I have got a guy here -- hey, Damian (ph), can you come over for just a second?

You just bought a ticket, didn't you?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. I got two. Yes.

FLOCK: Just bought two for today's game. Why are you optimistic?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm optimistic because even though we give them all a hard time, and the players and the owners, I really believe deep down there are smart people in charge of this game. I think after what happened in '94, they know better. They are businessmen, they know that they can't afford to not play today.

FLOCK: Speaking of businessmen, did they say anything about refund policy if there is a strike, to look on the bad side?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm optimistic. I didn't bother asking.

FLOCK: We asked -- Damian (ph), I appreciate it -- we asked earlier, Leon, and they said that they have not yet come up with a policy, have not announced a policy, felt perhaps that would be a bad idea to announce a cancellation policy when there wasn't yet a strike.

I leave you with one more image. How early do people come out for a 2:20 game here? So that's five hours or so away? There's a young lady down there who is already waiting, perched outside the gate, ready to go in and watch baseball today. She told me that she is optimistic. It's a great day to play, too, which the Cubs will do tomorrow if there is not a strike.

That's the latest, Leon. Back to you.

HARRIS: Good deal. Here's hoping she doesn't have to live there for nine months, until next season starts.

FLOCK: Waiting for the next one -- exactly.

HARRIS: Thanks, Jeff. We will check back with you later on.

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