It doesn't matter whether they acted out of mercy, in the spirit of cooperation, because of the good feelings the game generated in the wake of Sept. 11, or because union leadership simply blinked.

That's the beauty of doing nothing in this instance. The effect is the same.

It's now up to the owners to match the good-faith gesture. And dangerous as optimism is around this bunch, there's reason to think this round of negotiations will end better than the disastrous work stoppage that wiped out the end of the 1994 season and the World Series.

"This isn't 1994, both sides sticking their chests out," Jeff Bagwell of the Astros said in Houston. "You're talking about all the millions of dollars all over the place, but if there's no fans at the games because of a work stoppage, then there's no money for anybody.

"We want to play baseball. That's what we do. We've done a lot of good to get the game back to where it is. I think it's a very special time in the game. Who wants to ruin that?"

We'll find out soon enough.

Fehr said his membership was willing to wait until Friday before considering the question of a strike date again. That gives negotiators three days to make sure the talks are still marking progress, even if only on side issues. He won't let the hammer out of his sight then.

The players can afford to be generous now, and the owners gracious in return. But sooner or later, the only issues left on the table will be revenue sharing and luxury taxes. Then, the sides won't be arguing over public opinion or the moral high ground. They'll be arguing about dollars and cents.

"And you can rest assured," Fehr said, "that the players know how to protect themselves in the process of collective bargaining."

Jim Litke is the national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke(at)ap.org

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