Three big questions must be answered before MLB, Phillies can seriously consider playing this year | Extra Innings
Public health and safety issues are paramount, but allowing players to travel with their families would be a critical step toward turning concepts for MLB's return this year into a reality.
In a parallel universe, one that is free from the scourge of COVID-19, the Phillies are off today. Maybe they are flying to Chicago for a matinee tomorrow at Wrigley Field. Monday, they will be in San Francisco to face former manager Gabe Kapler. About 15% of the season is complete; the last 75% has yet to unfold.
Ah, the rhythms of a baseball season.
Back to reality, amid our quarantines and social distancing, all we really know is what we knew six weeks ago when spring training was halted. The season is going to look much different when it opens, if the virus allows it to open at all. And so we wait.
You’re signed up to get this newsletter in your inbox every Thursday while the Phillies season is delayed. If you like what you’re reading, tell your friends it’s free to sign up here. I want to know what you think, what we should add, and what you want to read, so send me feedback by email or on Twitter @ScottLauber. Thank you for reading.
— Scott Lauber (extrainnings@inquirer.com)
Three biggest issues for MLB to start season
Another week, another idea for launching the baseball season.
You probably have heard by now about the Arizona plan, in which essential personnel from all 30 teams live in relative isolation and play without fans at Chase Field in Phoenix and 10 nearby spring-training parks. In a similar concept, teams would be based at their spring-training sites in Arizona and Florida and play in realigned divisions with limited travel within a small radius.
This week, CBS Sports reported another modification: Texas would be added as a hub for teams, with Houston’s Minute Maid Park, Arlington’s new Globe Life Field, and several minor-league and college ballparks hosting games.
In theory, no less than Dr. Anthony Fauci has suggested that each plan could work. But many players have expressed reservations. And before any of the plans can advance beyond pie in the sky, three big questions must be answered.
1. Is it safe for the players to return?
Even without fans, the convergence of two teams, coaching staffs, and support personnel constitutes a gathering of 100 people or more, all of whom must have access to large quantities of tests and medical supplies that are in dire need elsewhere.
From a public-health standpoint, it’s not yet clear that MLB could pull that off. Until it’s certain, nothing else matters.
“What ideas come to fruition depends on what the restrictions are, what the public health situation is,” commissioner Rob Manfred recently told Fox Business.
2. Can players’ families accompany them wherever they go?
Travel is a fact of life in baseball, with players expecting to be away from home for at least 81 regular-season games. Rarely, though, if ever are they separated from their families for five full months.
The idea of leaving spouses and children behind in the midst of a pandemic is a deal-breaker for many players, notably Mike Trout, whose wife is due to give birth this summer. Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler and his wife are expecting in July.
Allowing players to bring their families would be an exponential increase to the population in an Arizona biosphere environment and complicate the goal of isolating them from the non-baseball world. But it also would alleviate some of the players’ concerns.
3. How much will the players get paid?
Three weeks ago, MLB and the Players’ Association agreed on a pay structure for a season that was shortened or canceled. Now, the league is reportedly claiming that the deal was contingent upon games being played with fans in attendance.
According to Manfred, ticket sales, luxury suites, concessions, and parking account for roughly 40% of teams’ revenues. Without it, owners contend that players’ salaries will have to be adjusted.
If medical experts do clear MLB to begin the season, it would be unseemly for players and owners to squabble over money. But it’s also a potentially thorny issue that must be resolved before any concept for how to return to the field actually becomes a reality.
The rundown
Games without fans? The general manager of the Phillies’ affiliate in Lakewood explains why that won’t work in the minor leagues.
In a note to employees, Phillies managing partner John Middleton committed to not reducing salaries or benefits through May.
Statistically, Dick Allen’s Hall of Fame credentials are undeniable. None other than Mike Schmidt told Matt Breen that Allen belongs in Cooperstown.
Chase Utley took a break from teaching second-grade math to discuss the possibility of a baseball season in 2020.
How would Phillies history have been altered if they won a lottery for Tom Seaver or not traded Fergie Jenkins? We explored those topics in the first two installments of our new “What If …” series.
To mark the 40th anniversary of the Phillies’ first World Series title, we’re looking at unsung heroes from that team. First up: Marty Bystrom, who had two of the best months of his life that year.
In our weekly Extra Innings podcast, Bob Brookover, Matt Breen, and I rewatched the Phillies’ NL East clincher in 2007. And in our Slack chat, we discussed how badly the Phillies are doing in one simulation of the 2020 season.
Shameless plug: My book, “The Big 50: Philadelphia Phillies,” was released this week. Please consider ordering it. Thank you.
Important dates
Tomorrow: 17th anniversary of Utley’s first big-league hit, a grand slam against the Rockies at the Vet.
April 28: 10th anniversary of Ryan Howard’s five-year, $125 million contract extension.
April 29: Scott Kingery turns 26.
Stat of the day
Quick, which Phillies pitcher holds the franchise record for most strikeouts in a nine-inning game?
Nope, not Steve Carlton.
Not Robin Roberts, either.
Roy Halladay? Try again.
On this date in 1961, Art Mahaffey struck out 17 batters in a four-hit shutout of the Chicago Cubs at Connie Mack Stadium in the second game of a doubleheader. The right-hander led the league with 19 losses that season, but rebounded in 1962 with 19 wins.
From the mailbag
Send questions by email or on Twitter @ScottLauber.
Question: I have not seen any reports about refunds for canceled games. I purchased tickets to see the Phillies in Cincinnati over Easter weekend. I have seen nothing on the teams’ websites about refunds. Thank you.
— Tony D., via email
Answer: Hi, Tony. Thank you for the note. I have heard from a few fans who are wondering about refunds and/or exchanges. Here’s the deal, as I understand it:
If not for the COVID-19 shutdown, the Phillies would have played 25 games by now, including 10 at Citizens Bank Park. Technically, those games have been postponed, not canceled, so MLB is not yet obligated to issue refunds even though the likelihood is that the missed games will never be made up.
But given the economic hardships that many folks are facing, it’s becoming increasingly unconscionable for teams to keep holding your money. Once MLB finally scraps the fantasy of a 162-game schedule, fans should be notified about a refund/exchange policy. So, don’t lose those receipts!