Sounds working with MLB on plan to have baseball in Nashville
NASHVILLE — From the looks of it, the Sounds might not have a season this summer.
From the sounds of it, it looks like there could be baseball in Nashville this summer.
The Sounds and Major League Baseball have been in ongoing discussions for the past month or so about a 32- to 44-game season that would consist of two teams of either 20 or 30 free agents each.
Those players would serve as a pool of emergency call-ups for every bigleague team.
Games would be played every Thursday through Sunday at First Horizon Park, home of the Sounds, and probably would begin July 23.
Sounds general manager and COO Adam Nuse said he has a list of about 70 potential free agents who were either in Triple-a or the major leagues last year who could play here.
"Hopefully it's some good baseball and you get to enjoy some good atmosphere," Nuse said.
MLB announced Tuesday it will have a 60-game season, which will begin in late July. Each team will have its own "taxi squad" of players who would be used as call-ups in the event of injuries or illness, meaning players in Nashville would serve as a backup plan.
MLB players are to report to their home team cities July 1 for training camp.
Teams are expected to have 30-man rosters to begin the season in late July before paring that to 28.
Nuse said the plan is to open the park to fans at 25% capacity, with tickets, beginning at $10, being sold in clusters of up to six. Proper social distancing protocols would be followed. He said the plan has been approved by the health department as long as Phase 4 is in effect.
Under the plan, players would be paid $400 per week by the Sounds. MLB teams that sign players playing in Nashville would pay a fee.
Nuse said Corban Joseph, a free agent who lives in Franklin and has played for four MLB teams, is one player who has been spreading the word about the plan and helping the Sounds with feedback from players.
Nuse said the team is working on a possible host-family option to help players with housing. He also said Vanderbilt has offered to help monitor the health of the players.
Nuse said the idea first was floated by a staff member as the team brainstormed ways to use the park if baseball isn't played. MLB caught wind of the plan and approached the Sounds about working on the idea together.
"It felt like baseball wasn't going in the right direction and we're trying to think, 'Do we become a concert venue? Do we do beer festivals? What do we do to keep the ballpark operating?'" Nuse said.
The team then began seeking approvals from the city, from minor league baseball, from its parent club, the Texas Rangers, and eventually MLB.
"Major League Baseball might help with some stipend of some sort to help with housing and some other expenses," Nuse said. "Ultimately we might be in a better spot than our original plan."
While it remains unclear whether minor league baseball will be played, the Sounds have forged forward with repairs and upgrades at First Horizon.
Nuse said the guitar-shaped scoreboard has been fully repaired from the damage caused by tornadoes in early March.
"We actually ended up upgrading it and made it full LED," he said. "I thought it was as good as it gets, but it managed to get even better."
The Sounds also said "Third and Home," a 7,000 square foot sports bar, which includes a 1,500 square foot patio, will open at 5 p.m. Friday. The bar, originally scheduled to open in April, is on the top floor of the stadium and offers a view of the Nashville skyline. It will be open daily, Nuse said.
"The view is really the big selling point," Nuse said. "You get to look out over the field and get great food."
And, Nuse hopes, baseball this summer in Nashville.