McCague: Flattening the curve while baseball goes dark

From Allison McCague at Baseball Prospectus on on March 23, 2020:

On March 12, Major League Baseball belatedly made the decision to delay the start of its season for at least two weeks in response to the growing COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, that delay has grown to at least eight weeks in accordance with CDC guidance. Even once it is safe to play baseball, teams will need time to ramp up, given the interruption in physically preparing players for the season.

To put it bluntly: this sucks. It’s a bummer to imagine a spring with no baseball, let alone an entirely lost season. As we continue to assess and reassess an ever-changing situation, there are innumerable questions baseball must answer. How will service time be handled? How will player bonuses and incentives be allocated? What will happen to the minor league players, already underpaid, living paycheck to paycheck? What of stadium staff? If baseball does start, what will the schedule look like? The rosters? The playoffs?

Read the full article here: https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/57854/flattening-the-curve-while-baseball-goes-dark/



Originally published: March 23, 2020. Last Updated: April 3, 2020.