The regular season was supposed to start today...but then the coronavirus appeared and now we are just waiting for baseball to come back. Anxiously waiting in fact, but it sounds like MLB and the Players union are close to an agreement for baseball to return.
Thank goodness! This virus has affected everything in our lives. It took away our sports, then it forced most of us to stay in our homes WITHOUT our sports and now it has caused a lot of restructuring just to get baseball back.
MLB has a lot to figure out, here are some of the biggest pieces:
1. A deal with the MLB Players Association that would advance a portion of players' salaries and cover many other labor-related issues.
2. Assurances from teams that non-player employees will receive paychecks through at least April, with possible cost-cutting measures by May
3. Distributing payments to minor league players, most players have not received a paycheck since the end of last season in early September
4. Full service time should be awarded to players, even if they played a shorter season as long as it still concludes with a World Series Championship.
USA Today has a good write up on this HERE. There's definitely a lot to figure out before the season gets rolling, but when it does it sounds like MLB wants to play as close to 162 games as possible. There have been rumored proposals out there for a 100 game season that follows the original schedule. I've also seen an idea out there that every team plays one double header every week with a possible roster expansion.
I can't say that I am a fan of the doubleheader every week. I think that could be pretty risky especially for any injury plagued team like the Yankees for example. We already have injury issues with Giancarlo Stanton and Gary Sanchez as it is, I cant imagine the extra stress on these guys. We're all worried enough about Aaron Judge and his collapsed lung and cracked rib. That's a lot of stress on these guys, and at this point I have ZERO confidence in our medical staff. Hopefully we can void the doubleheader idea.
But either way, it sounds like both sides are getting closer to a deal and baseball could return by June or July if this Coronavirus finally starts to subside. Training camps would likely resume in May and playoffs would extend into November. The World Series would move to a neutral site in a warm weather market or a domed stadium if government officials allow, contingent on the containment of the coronavirus pandemic.
There is still a lot to figure out here, but it sounds like we are heading in the right direction. At this point I will take anything, I just want baseball back. It would be weird to watch baseball so late in the season, but as long as it comes back I will be a happy camper.
Stay tuned and cross your fingers folks, hopefully we get some good news soon.
--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @nyprincessj
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