Jays waiting for quarantine approval

Team will hold camp in Florida if Ottawa rejects Rogers Centre plans

The Blue Jays appear one step closer to being able to train at Rogers Centre for the upcoming season.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Monday that “municipal, provincial and federal health folks” have given the team the OK, but they are still awaiting federal approval on the issue of quarantining.

The Blue Jays, the lone MLB team north of the Canada-U.S. border, had to ask for special permission from the Canadian government last week to use their Toronto stadium. The border remains closed to nonessential travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is unclear if the Jays would also be playing their home games in Toronto, or if permission is being granted for training only.

The Jays issued a statement late Thursday that they had begun a “screening and isolation process” in Dunedin, Fla., their spring home. If they get government approval, they would take a charter to Toronto “to begin training under a modified quarantine, isolated from the general public.”

It is believed the Jays camp will open Friday. A 60-game regular season would begin either July 23 or 24.

If the Jays do not get approval to come to Toronto, they would train at their Dunedin facility. The team closed its major- and minor-league complexes June 19 after player showed COVID-19 symptoms. Several players and staff subsequently tested positive for the coronavirus.

Florida has been ravaged by COVID-19 lately, announcing 9,585 new cases Saturday.

The Jays made it clear that their preference was to be in Toronto, saying they “are hopeful to stage training camp and play regular season games in Toronto and will continue to work through this possibility.”

MLB announced its plans for an abbreviated season last week.

Toronto would play the bulk of its schedule (40 games) against fellow AL East teams — 10 games each against the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays and Orioles — and the remaining 20 games against the NL East.