They did it. They really did it. They had one job. They blew it up.

On Dec. 2, all 30 of baseball's oligarchs unanimously voted to impose a lockout on the game. Explained Commissioner Rob Manfred: "We hope that the lockout will jumpstart the negotiations." 

Six weeks later, they made their first offer. 

Six weeks of nothing.

Throughout the "negotiations," the owners never once addressed the key issue separating the sides: Their "luxury tax," which serves as a de facto salary cap. 

According to Tyler Kepner, under the owners' most recent proposal, a $220 million franchise tax threshold would remain in place for three years. They knew the players wouldn't accept it. They were willing to cancel opening day. And now it's gone. 

It's time for baseball fans to take a page from the brave people of Ukraine. 

I don't mean to take up arms. Baseball is, after all, a mere distraction to the crapola we swallow in everyday life. We don't need violence or threats. But we need to stand for something. 

At a certain point, we - as Americans, as fans, as the true keepers of the pastime - must register our disgust over what these oligarchs have done. I've mentioned this in the past, and I believe that the entire international fan base yearns to be heard. Right now, there is no conduit, no means to vent our anger. 

Right here, I'm struggling to sound rational - to not scream obscenities in caps. America supported baseball through the Covid pandemic, filling stadiums when such crowds actually presented a threat to our health. On blogs like this, we have passionately followed the Yankees, showing a loyalty that the owners clearly take for granted. 

From birth, Hal Steinbrenner has "owned" not just a ballclub, but a piece of America. Hal voted for this lockout. Shame on him. 

Shame on him... forever.

I believe that, like Putin, the czars of baseball have made a horrible miscalculation. They have underestimated America's reaction to their greed. Yeah, we all know it's crazy for a player to be paid $35 million a year, but nobody ever forced an owner to shell out such an amount; they do it because they inhabit a world of infinite wealth, and such ridiculous sums are simply a checkbook away. 

There is no big-market competitive imbalance in baseball. In recent years, the Missouri teams - the Cards and Royals - have won more world series than the Yankees, Mets, Dodgers and Angels, combined. If the Pirates and Orioles suck, it's not because they represent smaller cities. It's because they made horrible trades.

On this blog, we talk a lot about a boycott. And that's a start. But here's the reality: The owners think our condemnations, our raw anger, will simply disappear after the first walk-off homer. History tells them that, by July, their hold on us will be as strong as ever.

The world has reached the point where it's not enough to simply say, "I stand with Ukraine." It's time for nations to do something, to make a difference. And so it is with baseball. 

We need a plan.