Japan trip on after dispute

Just when everyone was packing and preparing for opening day next week in Tokyo, the Boston Red Sox put the whole trip on hold. At least for a couple of hours.

In an extraordinary move, Boston players voted to boycott a nationally televised exhibition game at Fort Myers, Fla., and Wednesday afternoon’s flight to Japan for next week’s season-opening series against Oakland, upset that coaches weren’t going to receive the same $40,000 payments negotiated for players by their union.

A few hours later, all was resolved, and the Red Sox took the field one hour late for the exhibition game.

In Phoenix, Athletics players also considered a boycott. They didn’t take batting practice and held five team meetings before following Boston’s lead and deciding to play their scheduled split-squad game.

Major League Baseball agreed to pay the managers, coaches and trainers on the trip $20,000 each from management’s proceeds, a person familiar with the agreement said, speaking on condition of anonymity because details weren’t announced. The Red Sox agreed to make up the difference to make the amount equal, and to pay some of the other team personnel making the trip, the person said.

“It was a misunderstanding of what agreement was reached between MLB and the MLBPA,” Red Sox President Larry Lucchino said. “We said we would step up and make sure a second pool was created and would seek contributions from all parties.”

It was unclear whether Oakland would make additional payments to its staff.

“We are going to handle the situation internally at this point,” A’s President Michael Crowley said in an e-mail to the Associated Press.

Cancellation of the March 25-26 series at the Tokyo Dome would have been a publicity nightmare for baseball.