If the last week in MLB means anything, the MLB will be adjusting rules and schedules on the fly throughout the season. Major League Baseball made the decision to have a 60 game season, and they appear ready to do anything to make that a reality.
The first two games of the season went just fine. But on Sunday, the apple cart was set on its head. It all started when the Miami Marlins played a three-game series with the Philadelphia Phillies. Unbeknown to the Phillies, they were playing a series with players that had been exposed to the coronavirus. On Friday, one Marlin’s test came back positive on Sunday, another three positive tests.
With the New York Yankees laying in wait in Philadelphia after a successful series with the Nationals, everything came to a halt. MLB postponed/canceled Monday night’s game between the Yankees and Phillies and the Marlins game with the Orioles.
The Yankees, Phillies, and the Marlins were all holed up in Philadelphia, awaiting virus test results on Monday. The Yankees and the Phillies are apparently safe for the moment, but the Marlins got even worse news. Now one half of the entire team has tested positive since Friday, plus some of the crew.
Today the MLB acted swiftly, shutting down the Phillies until Friday and the Miami Marlins for at least a week. This left the outsiders in the matter with idle time, those being the Yankees and Orioles with no team to play. MLB’s answer was to send the Yankees back to the safe bubble of Yankee Stadium. Further, they sent the Orioles to play the Yankees for Wednesday and Thursday.
These moves will put the Yankees back on track to play the rival Boston Red Sox on Friday for a three-game weekend series. The Orioles will continue there schedule by leaving the stadium Thursday night to fly to Tampa for their series with the Tampa Bay Rays. Both the Phillies and the Marlins will remain shut down until further tests show that it is safe to play.
Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred earlier today refused to call this situation a nightmare. He said we expected this to happen at some point in the season, although not this early.
He appears ready to adjust schedules on the fly as needed to get the 60 game season completed. This may result in not all teams playing the full 60 games if the season is to be completed by the September 27 target. Some teams may play 55 or 57 games, or even less. There is precedent for how to handle this. After the strike in 1981, they discarded the typical games won formula and went by the winning percentages.
One thing is obvious; in this season filled with unknowns, it is to expect the unexpected. Meanwhile, Manfred has doubled down on the health protocols to keep players safe, demanding that they are followed.