Ottawa Citizen

Blue Jays fans getting few views of training

- ROB LONGLEY rlongley@postmedia.com

George Springer was eloquent and insightful, polished and profession­al when he gave us a glimpse of spring training Toronto style on a Zoom call Tuesday from Dunedin, Fla.

If you're a Toronto Blue Jays fan, it might have left you wanting for more than that from the team's US$150-million man. Good luck with that.

The pent-up demand to see how Springer fits in with the rest of the young Jays team would normally create a huge opportunit­y for the team.

Show the fans what they want with as many Grapefruit League games as possible over the next six weeks and let the infatuatio­n blossom.

Instead, Canadian fans will see only glimpses of their team over the 28-game exhibition schedule.

It remains to be seen how many spring training games will be televised — Sportsnet has yet to release a schedule — but it's almost certain it won't be more than a handful and none will be produced by the rights holder.

“We don't control that and we obviously are supportive of having as many games as possible being broadcast,” Blue Jays president and chief executive Mark Shapiro told Postmedia on Tuesday. “But we're understand­ing that (Sportsnet) have their own business to run.”

There's plenty to read between Shapiro's lines, starting with a reasonable guess that the Jays clearly would prefer to have more exposure from their corporate Rogers brother.

The good news — such as it is — is that Sunday's spring training opener is scheduled to appear on Sportsnet, one of a handful of games the network will squeeze into its yet to be announced schedule.

The bad news — and Jays fans are grudgingly being forced to get used to this — is it will be produced by the YES Network, which broadcasts New York Yankees games.

So instead of Springer expanding on his Tuesday thoughts about the Jays' clubhouse, his former Houston Astros teammate Teoscar Hernandez and what he expects of himself, Canadian viewers will be overloaded with tales of Aaron Judge, Gerrit Cole and Yankees prospects.

And if Springer's name comes up at all, good chance it will be with reference to a garbage can and related to the Astros' win over the Yankees in the 2019 American League Championsh­ip Series.

The Jays have always pushed for not just a high number of spring training games to be aired north of the border, but for Sportsnet to produce them. With mutual ownership, it makes sense.

A team loaded with bright, young players makes for good storytelli­ng, which makes for good ticket sales. That's less of a factor in 2021, with it being unlikely that any fans will be allowed in Rogers Centre, even if games are played north of the border; the pandemic is certainly a complicati­ng factor.

The frustratio­n began last year when, as a cost-cutting measure, Sportsnet opted to produce just two Jays spring training games, both of which were scratched due to the COVID-19 shutdown. A dozen more were scheduled, but were simulcast broadcasts from the opposing team.

The pandemic certainly makes it challengin­g for Sportsnet — and all media outlets, this one included — but it only accentuate­s the void.

And then there is radio. As of Tuesday, there were no announced plans in place for coverage of spring training games, either on flagship station Sportsnet 590 or on the network's website. As well, the network has yet to name a partner for playby-play man Ben Wagner.

At a time when fans are starved for news in advance of the season, it's a head-scratcher, even with the recent management shuffle at Rogers.

Meanwhile, there are some television logistics to be worked out prior to the regular season at TD Ballpark, where the Jays will play at least the first two homestands. Among the renovation­s to elevate the Dunedin facility to big-league standards, the team will have to determine where cameras will be placed to produce acceptable broadcast quality both for the Jays and for the visiting team.

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