Blue Jays to begin gathering in Florida
Club still expects government approval to pave way for MLB games to be played in Toronto
TORONTO — Until the federal government gives its final sign-off on the Blue Jays’ plan to play ball at the Rogers Centre this summer, there will be no batting practice or infield drills at the downtown Toronto stadium.
Though the Jays believe it’s just a formality that they’ll be allowed to train and eventually play here, the team announced on Monday night that it is mobilizing in Dunedin, Fla. to expedite preparation.
The team confirmed that it has begun moving players and personnel to its Florida spring training base to begin the screening and isolation process of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Under MLB protocol guidelines, that stop can be taken at a site separate from the intended training location.
Once testing is done, players and staff intend to board a charter flight to Toronto — likely towards the end of the week — where it will begin working under what the team is calling a “modified quarantine” where players and staff will be isolated from the public.
The itinerary is in place pending final approval from the federal government, which is reportedly seeking only minor tweaks to the Blue Jays’ operational plan in Toronto. At his daily press briefing on Monday, Ontario premier Doug Ford said all that is needed is a final “letter of support from the federal government.”
“I know all the municipal, provincial and federal health folks kind of gave their approval,” Ford said. “I know there are a few tweaks here in the province that (Ontario chief health officer Dr. David Williams) wants to work out with (the Jays.) But we have to wait for approval on the federal government on the quarantine side of things.”
In the unlikely event that they are kept out of Canada, the Jays are prepared to remain in Florida to begin training at the end of the week and then shift north whenever possible. The team is also expected to be given clearance to play all 30 of its home dates in the shortened 60-game season at the Rogers Centre. Fans will not be admitted to the stadium.
In its statement on Monday — the team’s first public comment since it was reported that it was closing in on approval to train and play here — the organization said it will continue to work toward that being the reality.
Behind the scenes, team president Mark Shapiro had a busy weekend consulting with Ford and the federal government and health officials to accelerate the plan. Moving vans in Dunedin, Fla., where the team had to abort spring training in mid-March, continue to be loaded with equipment for the trip north and could easily arrive in time for Friday workouts.
Here in Toronto, the Jays grounds crew has been at work preparing the field for workouts for the 58 players on the Jays’ player pool. While TD Ballpark in Dunedin remains the backup option, there are no serious plans to alter the travel itinerary now. Like the other 29 MLB squads, the Jays are planning to have a real home.
While reconvening in Florida is less than ideal given the spike in COVID positives in the state, the Jays plan to gather in isolation, the beginning of a quarantine phase that will carry over to Toronto whenever they arrive. On Monday, the league mandated that team workouts can’t officially begin prior to Friday.
Once the initial screening is completed, players are required to self-isolate for up to 48 hours, which is why the Jays’ charter north could be delayed until the end of the week.
IN THE BUBBLE
Central to the Blue Jays’ plan to return is its commitment to having incoming players and staff function in a tight bubble in the Rogers Centre area (if it does happen in Toronto), especially during the training camp period.
That would include all personnel staying at the Marriott hotel attached to left field of the stadium and essentially living in a quarantine under the dome. Players can access the field from the hotel and thus effectively live in a 14-day quarantine as part of the three-week camp.
The logistics surrounding the regular season are likely still a work in progress, but it’s conceivable that once the Jays clear their quarantine, visiting teams could be housed at the hotel as well. While it remains unclear how diligently movements can be policed, a bus from Pearson airport to the hotel attached to the stadium is as simple as it gets.
ON SCHEDULE
MLB isn’t expected to release its final schedule until the weekend or early next week but a preliminary version exists and it has been reported that the Jays will open on the road.
Columnist Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported that the yet to be finalized schedule has the Jays visiting Tropicana Field to open the season on July 24.
On one level it makes sense for the Jays to open on the road, allowing for more time for border concerns to be relaxed. If, for example, the Jays opened with a series in Tampa and across the state in Miami against the Marlins, it’s possible the Jays wouldn’t have to play a home game until the calendar flips to August.
As for training camp, teams are restricted to playing just three exhibition games and MLB has hinted that doing so in a city where one opens the season might make sense.
AROUND THE BASES
The 58 players named to the Jays’ 60-man pool on Sunday creates some opportunities for many prospects to at least get some action, given there won’t be a minor league season. Pitching prospects such as first-round pick Alek Manoah and Simeon Woods Richardson (who came to the Jays in the Marcus Stroman trade) will each get some work during camp, as will shortstop Jordan Groshans … Not surprisingly, a first wave of players opting out of the 2020 season emerged Monday. Do the Jays foresee some of their players doing the same? “We do not expect it, but we don’t know for sure,” Shapiro said last week. … Once the season starts, more than half of those Jays on the 60-man roster will be on a taxi squad, a group expected to be in Buffalo, home of the Jays’ triple-A affiliate.