In America, spring doesn’t truly begin until the first pitch on opening day. Unfortunately, the Major League Baseball lockout threatens to prolong winter. With players and owners struggling to reach a new collective bargaining agreement, a delayed start to the season seems likely.

To keep the game on the schedule, the national pastime should add a new twist to its own arbitration rule.

In the legal world, baseball is known for “baseball arbitration” — an innovative technique for resolving certain salary disputes. If a player and his team cannot agree on a salary, and that player is ineligible for free agency, both sides can submit the dispute to an arbitrator. Like in most arbitration proceedings, each side makes its case to the arbitrator.

Read more at Chicago Tribune