COVID-19 impact on MLB season

[Ennder]

I think the scales have tipped in favor of no season, though.

 

It is so odd how different see the world. I'd say the scales are tipping in favor of their being a season. 2 weeks ago people were still talking about the entire country being shut down until July and that is almost certainly not true anymore given we already seem to be moving into the apex. This virus has tracked exactly as expected so far so the worst case scenarios that were given are unlikely at this point and those were the scenarios that precluded baseball.

 

I'll be surprised if people aren't going back to work in some fashion in May and that puts plausible team sports in June. The big step though is how well contact tracing works, if that has instant hiccups it could push everything back 2-3 more weeks and there isn't a ton of margin to work with. It also depends on whether they are going to be willing to play a few weeks without fans. Because I have a really hard time seeing crowds back before July. If they decide it isn't worth starting without fans then I don't think it happens.

 

I mean really all we have to do is watch what happens in S. Korea and China. If they don't start up some sort of group events in the next 4-6 weeks or so it probably means we won't have a baseball season. They are more set up for a virus like this and they are a good 2 months ahead of us. The Korean Baseball League is playing scrimmages right now and hopes to be playing by April 20th. If that happens and they move to where there are crowds it is very hopeful that we get back to playing this season as well.

Edited April 7, 2020 by Ennder

[Fear The Chorizo]

So they're going to take 800 players plus support staff and stash them in hotels and allow them only to travel from hotels to the fields and back for how long? Does that honestly seem workable? I mean honestly?

 

I'm asking this question as someone who absolutely does not want to miss a season of baseball. I don't want to lose 25% or 50% of a season of Christian Yelich in his prime. But I just don't see how a plan like this is feasible. On paper it sounds fine, but just the Logistics of it don't make sense.

 

Well there should be no shortage of hotel room availability right now...The logistics of this is far easier than playing games in 30 MLB cities, fans or no fans...most of these players already live in the phoenix area, so getting them to the area or providing them the option of occasional visits with family or friends is pretty feasible once rapid result testing is in place, which is tracking to be when the calendar rolls into May as well. Hell, they probably love the idea of playing games and not having to fly all over the country all summer long. Support staff are also far fewer if all the teams are playing in the same town, too. Restrict travel and maintain social distancing/isolation from the general public until rapid response testing has been widely adapted before even thinking of moving games to home MLB parks. Heck, even if come July/August most of the public is back to business as usual, I'd expect the MLB season to continue from Phoenix if things are going smoothly and not disrupting the flow of their season. I'd be surprised if any 2020 regular season baseball includes games with fans in home ballparks - that doesn't mean they can't play games if the right conditions are in place for them to happen. MLB is looking for ways to get the most games played on their original schedule as possible, and I commend them for that.

 

The logistics of everyone sitting in their homes indefinitely makes less sense and isn't workable. Something has to give, and it starts with all sorts of businesses who are currently shuttered making plans on how to safely reopen. Waiting on things to get back to pre-Covid comfort for being out in public basically guarantees a business won't be around longterm, no matter how large or lucrative that company is. That includes sports leagues.

[MrTPlush]

Most projections, even for the latest states to be done, have the US being essentially done once we enter June. July there is projected to be zero hospital beds needed.

 

I’m not very worried about there not being a season. They seem overly determined to make it happen. They will start games in July if they have to. I don’t see anything, at this moment, that would make me think there won’t be a season. Only reason at this point to be convinced there won’t be a season is if you are pessimistic.

 

As far as May, yah, that I doubt.

[Fear The Chorizo]

Most projections, even for the latest states to be done, have the US being essentially done once we enter June. July there is projected to be zero hospital beds needed.

 

I’m not very worried about there not being a season. They seem overly determined to make it happen. They will start games in July if they have to. I don’t see anything, at this moment, that would make me think there won’t be a season. Only reason at this point to be convinced there won’t be a season is if you are pessimistic.

 

As far as May, yah, that I doubt.

 

Agreed with this on the actual start date not being May 1....but get going on planning how to get things started by setting a date and working towards having things in place to get rolling when conditions are ok to start playing. The article about May baseball talks about 2-3 weeks of a restarted spring training, which likely puts any regular season baseball starting in late May or early June....that's nearly 2 full months away. Two months' time is an eternity with how this disease progresses, so things will look incredibly different across the US at that time.

[adambr2]

I don't think it seems absurd or terrible. Please understand that this isn't just something cobbled together by a bunch of MLB execs in a conference room yesterday -- this already has the backing of MLB, the MLBPA, and more importantly, public health officials like the CDC. In fact, public health officials were the ones that presented this idea as the one most likely to work.

 

I am certain that it they have given this the green light, it comes with very little additional risk to public health, and in that light, I can certainly be open-minded about it. Trust me, if they do this, they are not just doing this willy nilly. There will be a ton of planning, precautions, and contingencies that go into it. The #1 component of whether they can pull it off will be access to convenient and immediate testing as needed.

 

I love that they are looking at creative ways to make this happen, and I hope they are able to pull it off. I love the implementation of the electronic strike zone for this and on-field mics. My main concern is for the players being forced to separate from their family for an extended period of time, which I can tell you from experience is a difficult thing. But if they are behind it and their union is behind it, I'm behind them too.

 

Whether or not this works remains to be seen but I would not personally be dismissive about it. Please don't look at COVID-19 in a vaccum as a health risk, there are currently a lot of negative side effects particularly to mental health right now given the current state of emergency lockdown, and if MLB can help do something to alleviate that while taking every precaution to alleviate the spread of the virus, I am 100% on board.

[owbc]

They have to do something like this if there are going to be any live sports this year. They have no choice. I like that they are thinking ahead here, public sentiment will be completely different in a few weeks when the case count is on the decline.

 

My main concern is how hot it is in Arizona. These have to be night games. Or let the east coast teams play early in the morning.

[homer]

I think this was a trial balloon that was leaked to gauge sentiment. I doubt there's baseball in May. June? Maybe.

[OldSchoolSnapper]

I think this was a trial balloon that was leaked to gauge sentiment. I doubt there's baseball in May. June? Maybe.

 

Possibly, but my first reaction was that they would do something like this to get people back to the game slowly, then when they move games to local stadiums it's not as shocking and there is perhaps less fear.

[adambr2]

One thing people should keep in mind when writing off ideas as ridiculous is that it is completely of out of necessity. Players sitting in the stands might seem absurd but anything that happens the rest of the year in the sports world will be unconventional, except maybe the NFL and even that isn't certain. There is no getting around that. I don't think anything is being forced, it's just going to have to be radical to work.

 

It's either that or nothing. I'd rather have something.

 

Probably my biggest concern is what RoCo said, just shuttling all these guys to and from their hotel rooms for several months and forcing them to live in total isolation when they're already away from their families seems really unhealthy and unrealistic. I think you'd have to find a way to rent houses or condos in the Phoenix metro area for them and have them living in small groups of 2 or 3 with access to certain gym equipment and amenities.

[nate82]

They have to do something like this if there are going to be any live sports this year. They have no choice. I like that they are thinking ahead here, public sentiment will be completely different in a few weeks when the case count is on the decline.

 

My main concern is how hot it is in Arizona. These have to be night games. Or let the east coast teams play early in the morning.

 

Should only be in the low 100's in May. If they avoid the afternoon hours it will be fine weather wise. Now if it is June then 10-4pm local time is out of the question.

 

The latest a game should start would be 8am assuming a 3 hour game. The final innings would played in the heat but as long as they are done by noon it shouldn't be too much of a concern.

 

The hottest times are normally from noon-5pm.

[DuWayne Steurer]

 

Probably my biggest concern is what RoCo said, just shuttling all these guys to and from their hotel rooms for several months and forcing them to live in total isolation when they're already away from their families seems really unhealthy and unrealistic. I think you'd have to find a way to rent houses or condos in the Phoenix metro area for them and have them living in small groups of 2 or 3 with access to certain gym equipment and amenities.

 

That's really my big hang up here. And it's been my hang up all along with a plan like this is suggested. Keeping these guys in what amounts to quarantine for three or four or five months just seems unworkable. People are trying to convince us that it is, but there's several reasons that this can fall apart. I understand that they expect to have quick test kits in place soon. But these guys can tell us that they want to play and are okay with this plan but two months of having no contact with anybody but other baseball dudes and many of them may change their minds.

[adambr2]

 

Probably my biggest concern is what RoCo said, just shuttling all these guys to and from their hotel rooms for several months and forcing them to live in total isolation when they're already away from their families seems really unhealthy and unrealistic. I think you'd have to find a way to rent houses or condos in the Phoenix metro area for them and have them living in small groups of 2 or 3 with access to certain gym equipment and amenities.

 

That's really my big hang up here. And it's been my hang up all along with a plan like this is suggested. Keeping these guys in what amounts to quarantine for three or four or five months just seems unworkable. People are trying to convince us that it is, but there's several reasons that this can fall apart. I understand that they expect to have quick test kits in place soon. But these guys can tell us that they want to play and are okay with this plan but two months of having no contact with anybody but other baseball dudes and many of them may change their minds.

 

Maybe for the ones with families, instead of putting them with 1 to 2 other baseball dudes you can offer them furnished condos that vary in size based on the family size and offer to transport them to Phoenix until this is all over and have them all shelter in place there with their families? At least have that available as an option if they want to do it? No one is in school right now anyway...

[OldSchoolSnapper]

All of these concerns are a lot easier to handle with readily available, fast testing. If you can make a community of a few hundred people that don't have it, it's not really a problem.

[LouisEly]

"May" doesn't necessarily mean May 1st. It could mean May 25th - Memorial Day - which, given baseball's recent history of strongly supporting the military and doing special things that weekend, could be a huge boost to national morale. May 25th is almost seven weeks away.

 

I don't see why players have to be isolated from their families. I'll bet they all live with them now, and just about all of them are under 40 and most are unlikely to have significant underlying health concerns/respiratory ailments. Manager/coaches are of higher risk, but I don't see why the players can't live with their families. Get hotel suites or rooms with connecting doors for a little space, or rent homes. Drive to the stadium in your own vehicle.

 

As for the players, it's either some form of isolation/distancing/living restrictions or they only get paid a fraction of what they had expected to get paid this year. For a couple hundred thousand dollars, I'd live out of a hotel room for 3 months. With a couple million on the line, I'd live just about anywhere for 3 months.

 

I also don't see why it has to be 3-4 months. Maybe it's through June, and if things go well can be moved to their local stadiums for "opening day" on July 4th, another key date for national morale. July 4th is three months away; with the amount of resources being dedicated to this, I don't think it's out of question for baseball to be in local cities on July 4th.

 

I think baseball without fans in the stadium could be fun. I'd love to hear all the things that players say to each other during games that you can't hear because of fan noise.

[owbc]

How do you plan the schedule using this method? Do they just write the whole schedule like usual and just pick a day when they switch back to regular ballparks? I doubt things are going to be fair/balanced so I hope they are planning an expanded postseason to make up for that.

 

I'm all for doing this and I hope they experiment like crazy with the rules since they can get away with it.

[adambr2]

Spitballing a plan here..

 

So I'm thinking Chase Field, having a retractable roof, should be the obvious site of any scheduled doubleheaders. That takes climate more out of the equation which is necessary if you're going to have doubleheaders, and gives you over 25% of your games at the most ideal location. Plus if you're doing 7 inning double headers, you can probably manage 2 doubleheaders each day at Chase -- you won't need as big of a time block with 7 inning games and no mound visits.

 

Schedule the first doubleheader to start at 8 a.m. local time (preferably East Coast teams). Second doubleheader to start 1/2 hour after the conclusion of the first. A 7 hour time block should be plenty for both, so plan on 5 p.m. for the evening doubleheader. Same plan, second game starts 1/2 hour after the first. Should be done well before midnight.

 

Then at the 10 cactus league stadiums, you have 5 morning games to start at 9 a.m. and 5 evening games to start at 7 p.m. All 9 inning games.

 

That's 20 teams involved in 10 games daily, and 4 teams involved in 4 games. 6 teams off daily gives each team a day off every 5 days. Teams should have a day off after a doubleheader when possible, and ALWAYS a day off after a night doubleheader. No going from a night game to a morning game without a day off in between.

[owbc]

Spitballing a plan here..

 

So I'm thinking Chase Field, having a retractable roof, should be the obvious site of any scheduled doubleheaders. That takes climate more out of the equation which is necessary if you're going to have doubleheaders, and gives you over 25% of your games at the most ideal location. Plus if you're doing 7 inning double headers, you can probably manage 2 doubleheaders each day at Chase -- you won't need as big of a time block with 7 inning games and no mound visits.

 

Schedule the first doubleheader to start at 8 a.m. local time (preferably East Coast teams). Second doubleheader to start 1/2 hour after the conclusion of the first. A 7 hour time block should be plenty for both, so plan on 5 p.m. for the evening doubleheader. Same plan, second game starts 1/2 hour after the first. Should be done well before midnight.

 

Then at the 10 cactus league stadiums, you have 5 morning games to start at 9 a.m. and 5 evening games to start at 7 p.m. All 9 inning games.

 

That's 20 teams involved in 10 games daily, and 4 teams involved in 4 games. 6 teams off daily gives each team a day off every 5 days. Teams should have a day off after a doubleheader when possible, and ALWAYS a day off after a night doubleheader. No going from a night game to a morning game without a day off in between.

 

Further expanding on this...

 

1) MLB is split into two leagues: East and West. East plays in the morning, West plays in the evening. No interleague play. Universal DH.

2) Scheduling is based on limiting mixing between teams. Series are 7 games against the same team, mixed home/away. Then trade opponents with another team.

3) Roster rules similar to playoffs--set prior to 7-game series and can't make changes until after unless a player tests positive. Everyone in the league gets tested for COVID each week when opponents switch.

4) The AM games will have to start really early to avoid the heat, they can't be ending at noon. Or they have to have a set end time.

5) Lots of rules to speed up play. Pitch clock implemented. No extra innings (or start extra innings with the bases loaded). Or just do all 7-inning games.

6) Several fixed date opportunities to move to regular ballparks--July 1, Aug 1, Sept 1. This will be easier with 7-game series--less travel.

[nate82]

Spitballing a plan here..

 

So I'm thinking Chase Field, having a retractable roof, should be the obvious site of any scheduled doubleheaders. That takes climate more out of the equation which is necessary if you're going to have doubleheaders, and gives you over 25% of your games at the most ideal location. Plus if you're doing 7 inning double headers, you can probably manage 2 doubleheaders each day at Chase -- you won't need as big of a time block with 7 inning games and no mound visits.

 

Schedule the first doubleheader to start at 8 a.m. local time (preferably East Coast teams). Second doubleheader to start 1/2 hour after the conclusion of the first. A 7 hour time block should be plenty for both, so plan on 5 p.m. for the evening doubleheader. Same plan, second game starts 1/2 hour after the first. Should be done well before midnight.

 

Then at the 10 cactus league stadiums, you have 5 morning games to start at 9 a.m. and 5 evening games to start at 7 p.m. All 9 inning games.

 

That's 20 teams involved in 10 games daily, and 4 teams involved in 4 games. 6 teams off daily gives each team a day off every 5 days. Teams should have a day off after a doubleheader when possible, and ALWAYS a day off after a night doubleheader. No going from a night game to a morning game without a day off in between.

 

Only issue I can think of is field conditions. I don't think 30 min is enough time for the field crew to come in and fix any divots, water the infield, put new chalk down, and any other maintenance that would need to be done to the field. After about a week or so the field would be in an unplayable condition. There would be little league fields in better condition than Chase Field after about a week or two of this.

 

I think you need at least an hour between games maybe two hours to repair the field maybe not every day but you would have to do the maintenance at some point. Maybe have a day or two off to have the fields repaired.

[A Swing and A Drive]

Any baseball this year would be tremendous.

 

However, in this quarantined teams in ARZ proposal, I have a few questions...

 

Would the hotel staff including the maids have to be quarantined at the hotel as well?

 

Or would the players have to clean and maintain their own rooms all season?

 

Maybe each player could just have a pup tent near their position on the field and stay in those for the season.

[igor67]

I'm actually somewhat optimistic they could pull this off. Coming off a long isolation and presumably falling infection rates I can see an enhanced testing procedure even for support personnel having minimal risk. There is definitely a high cost to the additional testing that would make this impractical for other places as early, but I can see it.

[jerichoholicninja]

Barring a miracle, whatever baseball happens in 2020 is going to be a truncated, weird season. If they can get things going let's just get crazy and try some things. Play a regular season of whatever length, have playoffs, do a "World Series" but say that the whole 2020 season doesn't count for official stats or historical purposes. Go with the universal DH, maybe a designated fielder with a second DH hitting. Bluetooth headsets for everyone to get rid of signs. Electronic strikezone. Unlimited roster size but maybe limit the number of pitchers. Why not? Unless they can somehow pull off 162 games or even like 140-ish, there's just going to be all kinds of weird things, might as well get really weird then.

[Pugger]

As much as I selfishly love the idea of watching baseball on tv, I can't imagine attending a game until the virus is eradicated, or I am vaccinated or deemed immune, or unless there is a treatment that is considered effective by medical doctors.

 

Then we all better be prepared to be in quarantine until Christmas. It will probably take that long for a vaccine to be developed and deemed safe to dispense to the public. And I doubt a vaccine will actually cure it. These kinds of viruses, once they appear, really don't go away. And they often mutate. I fear our lives will never be normal again and the upcoming depression will be disastrous for this country. Be prepared for worse unemployment than we saw in the 1930s.

[owbc]

As much as I selfishly love the idea of watching baseball on tv, I can't imagine attending a game until the virus is eradicated, or I am vaccinated or deemed immune, or unless there is a treatment that is considered effective by medical doctors.

 

Then we all better be prepared to be in quarantine until Christmas. It will probably take that long for a vaccine to be developed and deemed safe to dispense to the public. And I doubt a vaccine will actually cure it. These kinds of viruses, once they appear, really don't go away. And they often mutate. I fear our lives will never be normal again and the upcoming depression will be disastrous for this country. Be prepared for worse unemployment than we saw in the 1930s.

 

It's easy to feel discouraged and fearful in this time but the technology we have to combat viruses is incredible and scientists from around the world have dropped everything they were doing to work on COVID. It's not the first pandemic and it won't be the last but we'll get through this!

 

And given what a tough time it is, it would be especially nice to have baseball back. That's why it is great to know that MLB is trying to make it happen in some form or another.

[TURBO]

 

It's easy to feel discouraged and fearful in this time but the technology we have to combat viruses is incredible and scientists from around the world have dropped everything they were doing to work on COVID. It's not the first pandemic and it won't be the last but we'll get through this!

 

And given what a tough time it is, it would be especially nice to have baseball back. That's why it is great to know that MLB is trying to make it happen in some form or another.

 

Agreed!

 

ahhhh, a post that is not all doom and gloom... Thank for this.

[adambr2]

Agree fully with owbc. This, like every other pandemic, shall pass in it's current form. Will it be here a long time, possibly, maybe even probably. But the more we learn, the more we know, the better it's going to get. We are so early in this, in the near future we will have treatments, possibly vaccines -- it really is going to get better.

 

That's not to say our way of life may not change for good, but in some ways maybe it will change for the better. And there will be "normal" again.