Phillies players have been coming to town for a few days. Everyone must undergo “admissions tests” and wait for the results before they can participate in training at Citizens Bank Park in preparation for the shorter 2020 season.
Players testing positive for COVID-19 must register two negative tests before receiving authorization to return to the club.
Some players could participate in informal training as early as Tuesday, but the first “official” training won’t be until Friday, according to general manager Matt Klentak.
The Phillies will have 54 players in the camp and that number may increase to 60. At any time, COVID-19 could sideline a player or two or more, or even suspicion of COVID-19.
Fifty-four players is a great group. If the Phillies were training in Clearwater, where there are five full fields, a half field, multiple bullpens and batting cages, a large indoor facility, and another field across the street, expanding and finding work space would not be a problem.
It shouldn’t be a problem in South Philly either, but it will be a challenge.
In an effort to space things out, the Phillies will use both Citizens Bank Park and their youth academy fields at FDR Park. Players will be transported across the street to FDR Park and there will be security.
“We are looking to use all parts of Citizens Bank Park,” said Klentak. “It won’t be surprising to see the guys doing weight routines on the esplanade. That’s something we’re looking at just to give them a little more room to maneuver.”
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For reasons of space and distance, the Phillies will likely stagger the daily reporting times for players.
“You may have two groups in a morning session and two groups in an afternoon session, so you don’t have more than 50 players there at the same time in the locker room,” said Klentak. “We are working on all that.
“It will be a challenge. The season will look and feel different for everyone. We all need to be flexible. We can have the best of intentions to structure things in a certain way, but we can find out on Day 1 or Day 2 that it is not. working and that we may have to adjust. But right now, we’re doing everything we can to stagger the trainings both in terms of number of people and in terms of using multiple fields. “
MLB is still finalizing the 60-game regular season schedule. Opening day is scheduled for July 23 or 24. Teams can open with up to 30 players. After two weeks, the maximum number drops to 28 before decreasing to 26 two weeks later.
Teams can hide 30 players at a satellite training site throughout the season and remove from that group when reinforcements are needed. The additional group of Phillies will train at the Triple A facility in Lehigh Valley.
Several players around baseball have decided not to play due to COVID-19 risk. They include Ryan Zimmerman and Joe Ross of the Nationals, Ian Desmond of the Rockies and Mike Leake of the Diamondbacks.
According to Klentak, no Phillie has chosen not to participate. Pitcher Zack Wheeler plans to leave the team for several days in late July for the birth of their first child. You will have to go through health protocols when you return. As a general rule, players have three days of paternity leave.
“It is subject to change, but we do not anticipate an extended absence at this time,” Klentak said of Wheeler.
The Phillies left some room to breathe, for now, six open spots, in their group of players. They are expected to add more players, probably a receiver from inside or outside the system. Klentak said it was also possible that Odubel Herrera could be added to the pool. Removing a player from the 60-man group is allowed, but a team risks losing that player if they do so. That is another reason to preserve some breathing space.
It would be naive to think that the Phillies, or any team, will not be affected by COVID-19. The Phillies, in fact, have already had 12 positive tests, including six players. Everyone who tested positive recently spent time at the team’s training facility in Clearwater.
“On a relative basis, we have been quite fortunate that none of the cases, players or staff, was particularly serious,” said Klentak. “Some of our people have had flu-like symptoms and fevers that have lasted from a few hours to 24 hours. But no one has been hospitalized. There has been no serious concern for anyone, which is good, obviously.
“But I think what opens many of our eyes is how quickly it spread even in an environment where we were at the extreme extreme of caution. The Clearwater facility was quite airtight in terms of staggering times. that the players reported and working and cleaning the intermediate facilities.
“In some ways, it was frustrating for some of the players how strict it was and yet this kind of outbreak still happened. So it is concerning, but at the same time I hope that not only our team but our teams The league can learn from what happened on the eve of spring training and hopefully work to prevent more outbreaks like this from advancing. “
During their three weeks of “summer camp,” the Phillies will try to find the best possible roster. Top prospects Spencer Howard and Alec Bohm will be in camp with the potential to impact the season, though it won’t be surprising if the team tries to maximize future control of both players by delaying their addition to the active roster for a week or so. . .
“The fact that (Howard) is part of the (54-man) group shows that we see him as a candidate to compete for us in the 60-game season, and Bohm too,” said Klentak.
“I think we have a good team and we will do everything we can to get the best team out and win.”
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