Players on Course to Set Strike Date

Baseball’s labor negotiators made little headway at a rare weekend bargaining session, leaving players on course to set a strike deadline when their executive board meets Monday in Chicago.

The sides met twice Saturday for a total of about 90 minutes but spent much of the day in caucuses. They planned to meet again today, but there didn’t appear to be much likelihood they would reach an agreement before the union meeting.

“The setting of a strike date is an internal union matter,” said Rob Manfred, the owners’ top labor lawyer.

“They want to set a strike date, I guess they’re going to set a strike date.”

Talks have taken an increased urgency in recent weeks, with players wanting to press for a deal without setting a deadline.

The sides have spent much of their time on lesser issues, leaving the key topics of revenue sharing and a luxury tax on payrolls for later.

*

John Henry Williams, the son of late Hall of Famer Ted Williams, is giving up pursuit of his fledgling baseball career. The 33-year-old Williams, signed by the Red Sox two weeks before his father’s death, has told the Red Sox he won’t return to the organization’s Gulf Coast League rookie team in Fort Myers, Fla.

*

Yankees pitcher Orlando Hernandez was released from the hospital, diagnosed with a pinched nerve in his neck a day after he was forced to leave a start against Oakland because of numbness in his left leg.... New York Met third baseman Edgardo Alfonzo was put on the 15-day disabled list because of a strained muscle in his left side. The move is retroactive to last Sunday.... The Cleveland Indians activated closer Bob Wickman from the disabled list and optioned right-hander Sean DePaula to triple-A Buffalo.