MLB is in the planning stages of discussions about implementing a so-called pre-bubble construct for the final week of the 60-game regular season in September, according to a source. That is in addition to exploring a multi-city regional bubble concept for the postseason. MLB needs to ensure that all players and essential personnel enter a potential postseason bubble environment virus-free. While MLB has yet to formally discuss the idea with the MLBPA, here is what officials are exploring:
- For teams on the road that final week of September, a lockdown would be instituted where they remain in a hotel that entire week while not at the ballpark.
- For teams with one road and one home series, they would stay in a hotel even during the home series.
- For teams playing all home games that final week, they would stay in a hotel the entire week.
What officials are exploring for the postseason entails the use of four broad regional bubble environments. For the first round, eight best-of-three series will be played in four or five ballparks. Potential hubs include Southern California (two L.A.-area ballparks, one in San Diego); Texas (Dallas, Houston); the greater Chicago area (two Chicago ballparks, one in Milwaukee); and N.Y. (two ballparks). Expect an add-on to the 113-page Operations Manual for additional intake protocols once details are finalized with the union.
WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING: ESPN.com's Kaplan & Passan cited sources as saying that MLB has "consulted with the NHL about the benefits and perils of its bubble." The "commonalities between MLB and the NHL" make it a "clearer match than with the NBA or NFL" in terms of seeking insight. USA Today's Gabe Lacques writes the "occasionally dire state" of the MLB season is "not a result of these high-profile breaches as much as it is the reality of moving about in a COVID-19 landscape." So the "concept of 'hubs' figures to look more and more attractive."
