Report: Teams will skip winter meetings if sufficient CBA progress not made

Major League Baseball clubs are reportedly considering skipping the scheduled winter meetings in December if sufficient progress isn't made in ongoing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, according to ESPN's Buster Olney, citing sources.

The winter meetings, planned to be held this year in National Harbor, Md., from Dec. 4-8, are one of the busiest times of the offseason, as owners and general managers from all 30 teams congregate in a single location to discuss possible trades with other MLB executives.

Negotiations regarding an updated CBA have reportedly hit a snag in recent days due to a proposed international draft brought forward by MLB owners, a proposal that is being strongly opposed by some of baseball's biggest Latin American stars, including Jose Bautista and Robinson Cano. In exchange for implementing an international draft, the league has offered to remove draft-pick compensation for free agents.

The deadline for a new CBA is set for Dec. 1, and the league is also reportedly considering locking out its players if an agreement is not found.