MLB and players reach deal to end lockout and begin season on April 7

Play ball.

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have reached a deal for a new collective bargaining agreement to end a months-long lockout, according to MLB.com.

The new agreement still needs to be ratified, but ESPN's Jeff Passan reported that this "is expected to be a formality."

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This comes after Opening Day was postponed earlier this month, and the first two games of the season canceled, because Major League Baseball and the union weren't able to reach a deal. "My deepest hope is we get an agreement quickly," commissioner Rob Manfred said, per ESPN. "I'm really disappointed we didn't make an agreement."

Specific terms of the deal weren't officially released Thursday, but MLB.com reported that it was expected to include increased minimum salaries, as well as "a new pre-arbitration bonus pool to reward the top young players in the game, a raise in competitive balance tax thresholds," and more. The report also said the entire 162-game schedule will be played, and Opening Day is expected to be April 7.