When will baseball season start?

Opening Day and the rest of the 2022 MLB betting season remains in flux. Talks between the players’ union and owners appear to both make and lose progress with each update.

The two sides are divided by issues including the league minimum salary, the amount of salary each team can spend before hitting the competitive balance tax, the amount of teams in the postseason, and even the size of the bases.

Baseball bettors can dabble in the MLB futures markets while they await a new CBA between the players and owners. The MLB odds favorites on betting sites to win the Fall Classic – no matter when it’s played – are the Los Angeles Dodgers, followed by the Houston Astros and New York Yankees.

There will be a period of roughly four weeks between when a new CBA is agreed upon and the first pitch of the regular season. During that period, expect an abbreviated spring training and a hurried signing period for free agents.

When Will The 2022 MLB Season Start?

The owners locked out the players starting on Dec. 1. The two sides went more than two months without any formal negotiations before a frenzied dash to the owners' arbitrary deadline of a deal by Feb. 28. The owners even pushed the deadline back one day, but to no avail. The sides remain far apart on several major issues or are on the verge of a deal – depending on whose social media account you follow and when.

Here are our projected MLB odds on the date of the first pitch of the 2022 MLB season. These odds are compiled using a Bookies.com analysis of the current developments in the talks and past statements from key players on each side.

Projected MLB 2022 Opening Day Odds

Odds above are projected and not currently available at legal sportsbooks or betting apps.

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Behind The Numbers

The Lockout will turn 100 days old on Friday. The sides continue to talk, but when there is reported progress in one area, perhaps with the competitive balance tax threshold, other areas such as the number of playoff teams or an international draft pull the sides further apart.

Given that they hold all the money, the lockout will end whenever the owners determine that their losses moving forward with a shorter or no season will be counterproductive. They’ve already moved $10 million a year on their CBT threshold, moving from $220 million to $230 million in 2022. The players are seeking $238 million. It’s obvious a majority of the owners were prepared for a delayed/shorter season, especially one that lops off games in April, when post-Opening Day crowds are small and weather can be an issue for nearly every outdoor stadium.

If a deal is reached this week, Opening Day would be either April 6 or 7, and the MLB season would play a full 162-game schedule. Spring training would begin in a week.