MLB has taken the initiative after hearing the CDC’s recommendation of restricting events of 50 or more people for the next eight weeks. MLB was hopeful about having an April 9th opening day a few days ago, but that was best case scenario. Across the US we are seeing venues that hold large amounts of people start to close their doors, while people are recommended to start social distancing themselves to avoid further spread of the virus. Manfred expressed his support for players to leave spring training sites, but the facilities will remain open for limited access. Teams won’t even be able to form informal workouts together.
“really to give players some place to use a gym as opposed to being forced out into a public gym and the like. We’re really encouraging players to make a decision where they want to be over an extended period of time and get to that location as soon as possible.”
Rob Manfred on usage of Spring Training facilities
Manfred understands that some players have no place to go that would allow them to continue training. They understand that it is safer for the players to workout in a controlled environment than sending them out into the public. It really is all going to depend on each player and where they would prefer to stay for this possible eight week hiatus. Players were informed that if they left spring training they would receive an allowance of $1,100 per week until at least April 9th, with a belief that the clubs would then pick up the expenses until the shutdown came to an end. This pay would only be for players that are on the current 40-man roster, non roster invitees who were free agents last season and finished the 2019 season on a 40-man roster or the IL. This leaves any player out of this realm questioning if they’ll be seeing a paycheck anytime soon. Some MLB clubs have announced that they will be compensating these players at least a little bit for the time being. The players union and MLB officials will continue to discuss issues such as conditions for resumption of play, amended scheduling, players salaries and contracts. The players union wants to make it clear that this whole situation is fluid and can change day to day, but for now this is where we stand.
It’s looking a lot like the MLB would rather be cautious than rush into things, which would lead to the season starting in July the earliest. The worst part is that there is a real possibility that there will be no fans for the remainder of the season. MLB wants to take no chances when it comes to this matter and they will continue to evaluate the situation as it progresses. I’m not sure how many players would want to spend that amount of time in their spring training facilities. I think this is a main reason why Manfred urged players to find another place to stay for this shutdown. It’s better to be safe than sorry when it comes to matters like this, even if it means baseball being pushed that far and played without fans. Of course it would be weird as hell, but in a way it would be unique. I know it sucks, but if this is the only way we get baseball played this year, I’m happy. I don’t think MLB would go as far as to not have any fans in their stadiums. I can see it for a couple weeks and then allow people to start attending games again. MLB has made it clear they will continue to follow the recommendations of the CDC, so until we start getting positive news about the virus we will continue to see the season being pushed further back. As fans we can do our part by listening to our health officials and continuing to show love and compassion to the people around us. There are a lot of athletes and organizations doing everything they can to help the people affected by these shutdowns. The sooner we beat this, the sooner we can get back to enjoying sports. In the meantime, enjoy this video of a couple of quarantined Italians having a game of catch from their balconies.
The Washed Up Athlete 