Manfred said MLB has tried to be cautious about attempting to begin play too soonGETTY IMAGES
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred wants the league to be in position to take the field whenever government and health officials give the go-ahead, saying it is "incumbent upon us to turn over every stone to try to play the game in 2020 if there’s any way we can in the environment,” according to Ronald Blum of the AP. Manfred yesterday said, “We have tried to be cautious about trying to go too soon, based on what the public health situation is. For people to be out there saying we’re not going to have any sports in 2020, I think that’s going the other way." Blum noted there is "no deadline for a decision, and if the health situation dictates, baseball could even start in the fall and take advantage of warm weather in the Phoenix area." Manfred: "My job is to figure out the best possible way to play baseball when we know more about the surrounding environment" (AP, 4/15).
PLAYERS' POINT OF VIEW: USA TODAY's Bob Nightengale notes MLBPA Exec Dir Tony Clark knows no plan for MLB's return can be "seriously discussed, let alone presented to his own players, until COVID-19 is under control." Clark explained, "Everything centers around two things, the amount of testing available and a vaccine. And how it can be mitigated in the public arena as much as the professional arena. And it can't be at the expense of public testing." Clark also has listened to the idea of "radical realignment" with teams playing games at their own Spring Training complexes in Florida and Arizona, teams playing games alone at domed MLB stadiums or "even in Japan." He said, "We don't have the answers, and we don't expect those to come anytime soon." Clark: "There have been a lot of ideas thrown out there, but not much to the depth of them. Once we find ourselves in discussions with the league in terms of options and variations, we in turn can present those ideas to the players, and the players can decide what makes most sense. But for now, there's simply too many assumptions being made what it’s going to look like" (USA TODAY, 4/16).
HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT: ESPN's Jeff Passan said the Arizona idea is "clearly and obviously the one that has the greatest chance of working with our current set of circumstances, but we also have to recognize that those circumstances can change.” Angels CF Mike Trout had expressed concern about the Arizona plan, and Passan said he is hearing similar things from other players. But he is also hearing "completely opposite things from other players who say, ‘I don’t care. You can stick us in a fleabag motel. If we’re playing baseball, then we’re playing baseball'” (“SportsCenter,” ESPN, 4/15). ESPN Radio’s Mike Golic Sr. said of Trout's comments, “To sit there and just kind of dismiss things saying that’s crazy we can’t do it, how do you know?” ESPN Radio’s Mike Golic Jr.: “A lot of these guys need the money. Everyone’s not Mike Trout" (“Golic & Wingo,” ESPN Radio, 4/16).
LET THE PLAYERS PLAY: New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he spoke with Mets COO Jeff Wilpon and “I said, ‘Why can't we talk about a baseball season with nobody in the stands? Why can't you play the game with the players?’ I think it would be good for the country, I think it would be good for people to have something to watch and do to fight cabin fever and it's something that I'm going to pursue." Cuomo noted MLB would "have to make a deal with the players, because if you have no one in the stands then the numbers are going to change, the economics are going to change." But if MLB and the players could "come to an agreement on how to adjust the economics for that reality, I think that would be a good thing. We have to start to move to normalcy and people have to start to see some hope and light” (“Cuomo Prime Time,” CNN, 4/15).
