Arizona baseball bubble league

Our brightest minds are working on a solution

Major League Baseball issued the following statement Tuesday morning/

“MLB has been actively considering numerous contingency plans that would allow play to commence once the public health situation has improved to the point that it is safe to do so. While we have discussed the idea of staging games at one location as one potential option, we have not settled on that option or developed a detailed plan. While we continue to interact regularly with governmental and public health officials, we have not sought or received approval of any plan from federal, state and local officials, or the Players Association.

The health and safety of our employees, players, fans and the public at large are paramount, and we are not ready at this time to endorse any particular format for staging games in light of the rapidly changing public health situation caused by the coronavirus.”

To date all of these have been fun hypothetical baseball ideas from out of left field. This one is a bit more tied to the news.
 That Major League Baseball is at least thinking about how to play something approaching a baseball season with all teams decamping to Arizona for something I’ve decided to call The Arizona Bubble League. I didn’t much care for that idea. Neither did some players. This, so far, is my favorite line about it from anyone.

That’s literary. That’s some Cormac McCarty stuff there, friendo.
Anyway, MLB backed off of the specifics of last night’s report in a statement later in the day, casting this as more of a “hey, there are no bad ideas in a brainstorming session,” kind of thing. And, fine, that’s fair. As I said on Twitter after that report came out: I think starting play in May via a complicated quarantine system is madness, but talking about how, eventually, baseball can come back is fair game. Just gotta be sensible about it, and the report from overnight did not reflect good sense.
But what is good sense? What do you think baseball’s eventual return should look like? Would you prefer a truncated season? A season with as many games as possible?
I wanna hear your views on it. Be creative, at least within the bounds of realism. Think about what might work for the players and the teams and their families in all of this, not just the fact that you want baseball on your TV set yesterday.

Federal officials imagine a start to the 2020 baseball season in Arizona that might be difficult, if not impossible, for the sport to implement.
Under a plan supported by some leading members of three federal agencies, major leaguers would not sit bunched up together in a dugout but six feet away from each other in the stands, practicing social distancing. They would exist in a sealed environment, moving only between ballparks and hotels. And, perhaps most intriguing from the government’s perspective, they would serve as a model for how the nation could reignite the economy.
The plan, as part of its messaging, even would include players forsaking celebratory high-fives to avoid physical contact and possible transmission of the coronavirus. Games without fans ideally would take place starting in May or June in 10 spring-training parks and Chase Field in Phoenix. But before baseball effectively could proceed under quarantine, it would need to overcome myriad hurdles, including possible concerns raised by both its players and owners, sources say.
The sport is indeed discussing quarantining teams and playing in a centralized location, with Phoenix the preferred choice. But one official described the idea as still in the “concept stage,” adding baseball is reluctant to move quickly. The union, too, is hesitant to offer a premature endorsement, wanting more information on logistics and details, sources said.
Major League Baseball issued the following statement this morning:
“MLB has been actively considering numerous contingency plans that would allow play to commence once the public health situation has improved to the point that it is safe to do so. While we have discussed the idea of staging games at one location as one potential option, we have not settled on that option or developed a detailed plan. While we continue to interact regularly with governmental and public health officials, we have not sought or received approval of any plan from federal, state and local officials, or the Players Association. The health and safety of our employees, players, fans and the public at large are paramount, and we are not ready at this time to endorse any particular format for staging games in light of the rapidly changing public health situation caused by the coronavirus.”
The rising death toll and continued spread of the virus might leave baseball even less likely to play in the weeks and months ahead. An improved outlook nationally, difficult as it might be to envision at this moment, might persuade the sport to adopt a different plan.
Another potentially large obstacle exists as well. If baseball is to be played in empty parks, the sport will generate more limited revenue than under normal conditions – revenue that would come only from television contracts and advanced media, not paid attendance, concessions and parking.
The March 27 agreement between the league and union provides an economic road map for a shortened or canceled season, including plans for how players would be paid. The owners likely would ask the players for salary concessions if part or all of the season is played without fans, sources said. But historically, the union has defended contract guarantees.
Representatives from the union and commissioner’s office spoke about the Arizona plan for less than an hour on Monday and intend to continue discussions this week. If the two sides reach agreement and state and federal government approval is secured, it is unclear if the entire season would take place in Arizona, where the summer heat is oppressive, or if games eventually could be played in other cities as well, locales that would become more viable once the virus is more under control.
Federal officials from the Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute of Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention support the plan, and officials in Arizona are intrigued by the idea of hosting 30 major-league teams and bringing attention and business to their state, sources said. But an official from the Major League Baseball Players Association emphasized that even under potential political pressure, the union will protect the safety and interests of its players.
One idea under discussion is whether the players would be completely isolated in Arizona; their wives and children might be permitted to stay with them in hotels, in the way that families are quarantining together across the country, sources said. The plan might also evolve over time to become less restrictive.

Protective uniforms may be neccessary

The inclusion of families, however, would require the sport to greatly expand the number of people in its protective bubble – and that number, when including those involved in transportation, lodging, security and television production, already would be in the thousands.
The logistics of isolating such a group would be complicated, to say the least. The level of government cooperation required might extend to the State Department, which would need to approve travel for players flying back into the U.S. from places such as Japan and the Dominican Republic. League officials already have been in contact with the Arizona Diamondbacks, the sole major-league team in the state, about the use of Chase Field and related matters.
Baseball, taking place outdoors and with players generally positioned away from each other, is the logical choice as the first major professional sport to return, proponents of the plan say. The lack of physical contact, compared to basketball and especially football, should make players less vulnerable to the transmission of the coronavirus. People across North America would watch players perform in a controlled environment on local and national television and, in theory, could better understand the lifestyle adjustments they will need to make in the future.
By the time baseball would resume, testing should be readily available, some federal officials say. Players would undergo regular testing to ensure they are not infected during an initial quarantine period, then begin an abbreviated spring training and continue with regular testing thereafter. The union and MLB are discussing the expansion of rosters to as many as 50 players to ensure the easy availability of substitutes, giving teams additional flexibility not only if players became ill, but also for what likely would be a compressed schedule. Protecting players from the virus, however, might be less difficult than protecting older managers and umpires, who might be more vulnerable.
The federal officials backing the plan believe another concern – the potential draining of medical resources from those in greater need – would not be a major obstacle, sources say. All teams employ their own physicians, and the CDC would be quietly involved, establishing practices, providing consultations and perhaps embedding personnel. The infection of one player would not necessarily force an entire team to be quarantined, provided that player had engaged in proper social-distancing practices.
The health considerations, however, would extend beyond players and other club personnel. Hotel workers might be asked to live on-site for a period of time, and wear masks and gloves at all times. The workers, too, would be tested regularly, and avoid direct contact with the baseball contingent.
With meals, the new reality likely would be similar to the practice some eateries restaurants already have adopted – food individually wrapped and left for customers to retrieve without going near any server. Salad bars and buffets available to more than one customer at a time might be less common in the future.

Perfect 6 feet apart

The union would want assurances that baseball and the government would take every possible precaution to prevent players from being in harm’s way.

 The government officials, however, believe that with the proper measures, the sport can be played as safely as possible. They also believe baseball can play a major role in the country’s restoration, as it did during World War II and after 9-11.



In a nation dealing with so much tragedy and uncertainty, the plan still sounds like a longshot. But for baseball to be played in 2020, there might be no other way.