MLB Opening Day Set For July 24; Players Agree To Return To 'Spring' Training July 1
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF/AP) — After months of heated negotiations a timeline has emerged for the return of baseball during the coronavirus pandemic.
On Tuesday, the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) told the league the players will comply with the league's proposed timeline for the 2020 season with 60 games in 66 days.
The players agreed to return for Spring training on July 1 in their home cities, giving them a little more than 3 weeks before Opening Day, slated to happen around July 24.
Both sides are still negotiating health and safety protocols, but sources have told KPIX it is not expected to be a stumbling block.
According to the proposed agreement, high-risk individuals would be allowed to opt out and still receive salary and service time, but others who sit out would get neither money nor the service credit needed for eligibility for free agency and salary arbitration.
Players would be given staggered reporting times over several days for intake screening. The time will be used for coronavirus testing ahead of the resumption of workouts, which were stopped March 12 due to the pandemic.
The San Francisco Giants and Oakland A's both posted to their social media accounts about the return of baseball.
It's official! Baseball returns in July. #SFGiants pic.twitter.com/8dhzLxmEOB
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) June 24, 2020
— Oakland A's (@Athletics) June 24, 2020
Forty players and staff members tested positive for COVID-19, last week, according to USA Today. There are also reports of players and visitors testing positive or showing symptoms of coronavirus at training facilities for the Philadelphia Phillies, Toronto Blue Jays, Houston Astros, San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Angels.