Shelton praises virus response
CHICAGO — Even as the 2020 season appears to be on shaky ground, a conclusion drawn after some harsh words from Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred delivered to union chief Tony Clark, manager Derek Shelton remains confident that the Pirates have done all the right things.
A father of three, Shelton obviously worries about the coronavirus pandemic from a societal standpoint, but giving the Pirates manager comfort is the fact that they’ve seemingly grasped the severity of this from the beginning.
As an example, Shelton cited what the Pirates did March 3, more than a week before the sport shut down. That’s when, “out of an overabundance of caution,” they conducted a “deep clean” of LECOM Park in Bradenton, Fla.
“Our guys are doing a heck of a job,” Shelton said Friday before a game against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. “They’re following the protocols, and we’ve continued to stay on top of it. That’s a credit organizationally.”
The same likely cannot be said for all MLB teams, which is why this season could wind up being less than two weeks long.
According to ESPN, which broke the story of Manfred warning Clark that he may shut the season down if things don’t improve, a big point of contention has been players failing to follow the health and safety protocols.
Testing data released by MLB Friday indicated that, in the past week, 29 positive tests were reported, including 21 from one team (the Miami Marlins).
The fallout has forced eight teams to postpone games — some have been rescheduled — and it apparently has Manfred and local officials concerned that players are not following the 113-page operations manual.
Shelton does not see his players cutting corners and he did not express serious concern that the season could be canceled by Monday.
“I think it’s good that they’re getting together and talking because, as we’ve talked about with everything, we’re continuing to adjust,” Shelton said. “We’ve had a consistent message with our group about trusting each other. Trust the people you’re around. Trust the decisions you’re making. That’s been our message. We’ve continued to hammer it.”
Not that it’s been without a few difficult conservations. While Shelton said he has not had any players who were seriously close to opting out, a few have concerns.
Those have been handled with open and honest discussions, Shelton said. And by listening.
“We’re going to educate,” Shelton said. “We’re going to be compassionate. We’re going to talk about it. And we want to hear voices. So if people have feelings, we are definitely addressing them.
“Normally they’re not addressed by me. They’re addressed by people who are a lot smarter than me and have a way better understanding of the medical and the protocols.”
‘Eye-opening experience’
From a player perspective, Mitch Keller said it was “eye-opening” to have the COVID-19 situation consume the Cardinals, a division rival. Before that, the virus was mostly affecting teams in the National League East and American League East divisions. To that end, the Pirates have begun wearing N95 masks when they travel, around hotels and at ballparks. That’s a step up from the cloth ones they had been wearing.
“We’ve been informed on how to prepare and keep ourselves as safe as possible,“Keller said. ”One way we do that is just wearing our masks.”
Friendly confines
Friday was special for Shelton, who grew up in nearby Gurnee, Ill., and was to manage his first game at Wrigley Field. aturday, Keller is scheduled to make his first start here.
“It’s going to be different because the whole thing about Wrigley is the fans and the atmosphere it brings,” Keller said. “It’s not going to be the same, but it’ll definitely still be a cool experience.”
Shelton said his first game at Wrigley was with his father, Ron, who kept talking about Giants legend Willie McCovey.
Birthday wishes
Shelton turned 50 Thursday and enjoyed a low-key celebration. He had breakfast with his wife (Alison) and daughter (Gianna) in Pittsburgh. When the club got to Chicago, Shelton had a deep-dish pizza delivered to his hotel room. But his favorite gift might have been some new art for his office: a Pearl Jam mixed-media piece, multi-layered with song lyrics, acrylic and spray paint that local artist Denielle DeSantis designed with input from Alison Shelton.