What would you like to see come out of the MLB lockout?

The MLB lockout began on the first day of December. Five weeks later, the league and Players Association haven’t even begun talks on their new Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Maybe they will start negotiating in January. Maybe. Evan Drellich of The Athletic reports that the league is preparing to present an opening proposal to the players, “likely this month.” Jeff Passan of ESPN doesn’t paint any rosier picture, suggesting things won’t “ramp up” until late-January.

Pitchers and catchers are supposed to report to spring training in around five weeks, in mid-February. There’s still time for that to happen, but the clock is ticking quickly. Opening Day is scheduled for March 31. And there’s still an offseason to finish at some point too.

Since the actual people involved in this dispute can’t be bothered to even talk about it, we may as well discuss it here at least, especially since their impasse prevents any other news from happening.

So here’s the question. Keeping in mind that our opinions as paying customers count for absolutely zero in the eyes of either side, what would you like to see come out of this lockout?

You might have thoughts regarding the real-life issues on the table, or you might have dreams about how you wish the system would be set up. If you want to stick to the realistic, then topics might include:

• How to reform the service/arbitration process so that players get paid earlier in their careers
• How far to raise the luxury tax
• How to avoid tanking and preserve competitive integrity
• Whether to expand the postseason field, and by how many teams
• What to do about qualifying offers and compensation for losing free agents

Or if you want to get more idealistic, then the sky’s the limit. I’ve written before about how I’d like to see a shift toward the financial model used in the NBA, because I think it would be the most fair and lucrative for both sides, but of course that would be a seismic change and it’s not going to happen in this new deal.

If there’s one thing we can all agree we want from the lockout, it’s for it to end. Beyond that, what are you hoping for? To the comments!