The Major League Baseball and Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) agreed on health and safety protocols and allowed Commissioner Rob Manfred to finalize a 60-game schedule for the 2020 season last week. If everything goes according to plan, we are less than a month away from regular season baseball.
While there is still enough time for something to go wrong, such as the new coronavirus that forces the league to reconsider the logistics and wisdom of playing during a pandemic, we have decided to describe some of the key dates and deadlines expected. of the next calendar.
While we are still awaiting the full schedule, we know some key dates for the MLB 2020 shortened schedule.
Start of ‘spring’ training: July 1
In accordance with the MLBPA-MLB agreement, players are expected to report to their camps by July 1. Presumably there will be exceptions for international players, who may have their trip delayed by COVID-19. The exhibition season, in whatever form it takes, will likely begin sooner rather than later, and the regular season will begin approximately three weeks after the date of the report.
Opening day: July 23 or 24
Fans are generally thinking of the trade deadline the last week of July. This year, it looks like opening day will be featured in late July. The league says the season will begin on July 23 or 24. July 23 is a Thursday, so in theory the league could schedule one or two major games that night before hitting a full roster that weekend. What about the trade deadline? We are glad you asked.
Trading deadline: August 31
One of the rumors is that the trade deadline will be delayed by a month, to August 31, or approximately the midpoint of the season. Fair enough.
End of regular season: likely on September 27
The end of the regular season is expected to come during the last days of September. That way, the league can avoid playing the regular season in October, delaying the postseason and opening up the possibility that the World Series (or other tournament games) will be canceled due to another wave of COVID-19.
End of the postseason: Probable before November 1.
Like at the end of the regular season, MLB has been reluctant to run the year too deep in the fall for fear it might not be completed. Even before resuming training, MLB has had numerous positive cases of COVID-19 among players and staff in the past week.
