From the Associated Press:
NEW YORK (AP) — Putting all 30 teams in the Phoenix area this season and playing in empty ballparks was among the ideas discussed Monday by Major League Baseball and the players’ association.
The sides held a telephone call to talk about paths forward for a season delayed by the coronavirus pandemic, people familiar with the discussion told The Associated Press. They spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because no details were announced.
Ideas are still in the early stage, and the Arizona option would have many obstacles to overcome, the people said.
“MLB has been actively considering numerous contingency plans that would allow play to commence once the public health situation has improved to the point that it is safe to do so,” the commissioner’s office said in a statement Tuesday. “While we have discussed the idea of staging games at one location as one potential option, we have not settled on that option or developed a detailed plan.”
Baseball officials intend to study which options may be viable.
To read the complete story, click here.
Editor’s Note
Is this a good idea? If so, when? A number of new stories suggest that MLB may be looking at a 100 game schedule which means starting games on or after June 1, 2020. Query whether that plan would include a re-start of spring training or perhaps a limited spring training to get the players ready, avoid injuries, and establish the quarantine or whatever protective measures they might put in place. Comments invited below.
What of Fastpitch Softball?
And what about Fastpitch Softball? Will it follow MLB? Just a hunch but I suspect that because it’s an amateur sport, a more cautious approach. On the international stage, the Olympics have been pushed back a full year, and most of the WBSC events “postponed until further notice”.
The last WBSC event played was the Men’s U18 World Cup in New Zealand, February 22-March 1, 2020 just before the crisis began. The Women’s U 18 World Cup which was slated to be played in Lima Peru starting August 23, 2020, but is now on hold, in the “postponed until further notice” category.
Looking at the WBSC Calendar, the first WBSC event showing “dates to be confirmed” (rather than postponed until further notice is the Men’s U23 Baseball World Cup which was to begin September 30-October 9, 2020.
Click below for WBSC Calendar, as of today.
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