Yankee Stadium has been discussed as a possible host for the Yankees for Spring Training II GETTY IMAGES
The Yankees "remain likely to hold spring training in Tampa should MLB and the Players Association eventually reach a deal on resuming the season," but the rapidly increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases in the state of Florida has "spurred the club to, at least behind the scenes, discuss the topic of holding Spring Training II at Yankee Stadium," according to sources cited by Erik Boland of NEWSDAY. Boland notes Tampa not only has "spacious Steinbrenner Field and its four fields for workouts, but less than a mile away, there also is the club's minor league complex that has an additional four fields." The eight combined fields "would make the required social distancing protocols easier to abide by for players and staff." But the surge in COVID-19 cases in the state "prompted the subject of going to Yankee Stadium to be raised." Additionally, some voices in the organization have "raised logistical concerns." Among the "most significant of those concerns: reconvening, in the midst of a pandemic, all players and staff in Tampa for a three-week spring training, then transporting them to New York for the quick turnaround into the regular season, whatever form it takes" (NEWSDAY, 6/19).
