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SPORTS

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2 , 2022. WASHINGTONPOST.COM/SPORTS M2 D

That there is

genuine animus

between baseball’s

owners and the

players has been

apparent for

months if not

years. The

unfortunate thing

now is that the particulars of

who’s right and who’s wrong

don’t much matter. What

matters: The sport long ago

ceded any claim to its standing as

the national pastime, and there is

no steward who cares deeply

enough about it as a civic

institution — not a business — to

save it from the people who run

it.

So what replaces the hope that

normally arrives with spring

training — not to mention the

first two series of the season,

which Commissioner Rob

Manfred canceled Tuesday — is

raw disrespect and contempt for

the people who pump the billions

of dollars into this squabble in

the first place: the fans.

“The concern about our fans is

at the very top of our

consideration list,” Manfred told

reporters Tuesday in Jupiter, Fla.,

where negotiations between

Major League Baseball and the

players union collapsed.

There was no rimshot.

Manfred somehow kept a straight

face. And then he went on to say

he had no idea when the next

SEE SVRLUGA ON D3

I n the lockout’s darkest hour,

who will save baseball from itself?

Barry

Svrluga

WILFREDO LEE/ASSOCIATED PRESS

For the first time in nearly three decades and a half-dozen CBAs, labor unrest will cost MLB part of its regular season — at least the first two series, about 90 games.

BY SAMANTHA PELL

Washington Capitals winger
T.J. Oshie is normally a pretty
positive person. Frequently jok-
ing and smiling, he’s an optimist
who tries to see the best in every
situation. But over the past
month, as he tried to recover
from an upper-body injury that
left him sidelined for an extend-
ed period of time, negativity
about his health started to creep
in.
Oshie would have one good
day, but that would be followed
by three to four really bad ones.
That cycle repeated itself for
weeks until he finally was able to
be on the ice consistently over
the past two weeks. He credited
his wife, Lauren, for helping him
through the rough patch.
“The last month was pretty
rough for me personally, more so
the first three weeks,” Oshie said.
“... Thankfully we got great
trainers, doctors and coaches,
management. Everyone just
came together to find a way to
get me back on the ice, and we

did it.”

Oshie’s first game back was

Thursday — a 4-1 loss to the New

York Rangers at Madison Square

Garden. He smiled throughout

his postgame media availability.

His team had suffered an ugly

defeat, but he just couldn’t help

it.

“I couldn’t be happier,” he said

that night. “I shouldn’t be smil-

ing after that type of loss, but I’m

just so happy to be back with the

guys, back in the room and be on

the ice battling again.”

The nature of Oshie’s latest

ailment, suffered in mid-Janu-

ary, was not disclosed by player

or team. But Oshie said it was

something he has been dealing

with for a bit. He said he left

Washington’s Jan. 15 game early

after something didn’t feel right,

and “everything kind of went the

wrong way.”

Oshie said he felt a little tired

during his return Thursday. He

SEE CAPITALS ON D3

After his latest ailment, Oshie is just happy to be back on the ice

DERIK HAMILTON/ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Capitals’ T.J. Oshie has been limited to 21 games this season. “It’s been real frustrating,” he said.

PRO FOOTBALL

Aaron Rodgers remains

undecided as offseason

begins to get moving. D2

OFF THE FIELD

Sanctions against Russia

expand to figure skating,

among other sports. D2

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

A Churchill player is doing

what he can to move

past an on-court brawl. D4

BY NICKI JHABVALA

indianapolis — The Washing-

ton Commanders are open for

business. In his first almost-nor-

mal NFL scouting combine since

being hired as the team’s head

coach, Ron Rivera reiterated

what he has said time and time

again since the start of the offsea-

son: The team, still in search of a

long-term solution at quarter-

back, is exhausting all avenues.

“We’re trying to let people

know, ‘Hey, we’re interested,’ ” Ri-

vera said Tuesday.

The Commanders’ coaching

staff arrived at the combine Mon-

day and began interviewing draft

prospects that evening at Lucas

Oil Stadium. But the focus, un-

doubtedly, is split among the eval-

uation of college prospects, con-

versations about the team’s free

agents — many of whom Rivera

expressed interest in re-signing —

and the potential veteran options

for solving the franchise’s quar-

terback conundrum.

SEE COMMANDERS ON D2

In Year 3,

Rivera still

is hunting

for his QB

Commanders will explore

rookies, veterans to find

elusive long-term starter

Hurricanes at Capitals

Tomorrow, 7 p.m., ESPN Plus, Hulu

Hawks at Wizards

Friday, 7 p.m., NBCSW

BY CHELSEA JANES

jupiter, fla. — After all that, the

angst and the waiting, the postur-

ing and the bickering, Major

League Baseball announced Tues-

day that it will delay the start of

the 2022 season after the MLB

Players’ Association rejected its

latest proposal for a collective

bargaining agreement. For the

first time in nearly three decades

and a half-dozen CBAs, labor un-

rest will cost MLB part of its regu-

lar season — at least the first two

series, or roughly 90 games.

“I had hoped against hope I

would not have to have this par-

ticular press conference in which

I am going to cancel some regular

season games,” Commissioner

Rob Manfred said. “We worked

hard to avoid an outcome that’s

bad for our fans, bad for our play-

ers and bad for our clubs. I want to

assure our fans that our failure to

reach an agreement was not due

to a lack of effort by either party.”

News conference pleasantries

aside, the blame game will play

out over the weeks, months and

years to come, regardless of how

long this dispute continues and

how many games are lost. It began

to play out Tuesday afternoon,

when an MLB spokesman de-

clared that the players union’s

tone had changed dramatically

since the sides split up around

2:30 a.m., even though the union

had been far more measured in

SEE MLB ON D3

As talks sputter, games are lost

for the first time since 1995

MLB scraps Opening Day

BY AVA WALLACE

The Washington Wizards have

followed a familiar script since

the start of this season, so much

so that it might as well be written

on one of those boxes that con-

tain an ax in case a fire breaks out

at Capital One Arena. In case of a

close game, break this glass —

and get the ball to Kyle Kuzma or

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope for a

miracle three-pointer. Never you

mind if said close game came

down to the final minutes be-

cause the Wizards had given up a

double-digit lead early in the

fourth quarter.

But Tuesday night, in a 116-113

win over the Detroit Pistons,

what once worked for the Wiz-

ards required some freestyling.

With his team up two points with

4:10 to play, Kuzma missed his

three. Caldwell-Pope then

missed a shot with the score tied

about a minute later.

What did work for Washington

(28-33) was being aggressive and

driving to the rim.

The Wizards retook the lead

for good when Kuzma drew a

foul and hit both free throws

with 3:18 to play. They cemented

it with a layup from Caldwell-

Pope that Kuzma followed up

with a block of Cade Cunning-

ham.

Thomas Bryant capped the

mini-streak with a dunk so fero-

cious that it got the paltry crowd

on its feet and miming raising

the roof in unison with the

SEE WIZARDS ON D5

Creativity,

purpose

o vercome

late lapses

WIZARDS 116,

PISTONS 113