2020 Major League Baseball season

The 2020 Major League Baseball season has been shortened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Spring training resumed on July 1 rebranded as "Summer Camp".[1] Each team will play 60 regular season games, which began on July 23 with the defending World Series champion Washington Nationals facing the New York Yankees, and is scheduled to end on September 27. An expanded 16-team postseason tournament is then scheduled to begin on September 29. The World Series is set to begin on October 23, and a potential Game 7 would be played on October 31.[2][3]

2020 MLB season
LeagueMajor League Baseball
SportBaseball
DurationJuly 23 – October 31, 2020
Number of games60
Number of teams30
Draft
Top draft pickSpencer Torkelson
Picked byDetroit Tigers
Regular season
World Series

The full 162-game regular season was originally scheduled to begin on March 26. However the pandemic caused Major League Baseball (MLB) to announce on March 12 that the remainder of spring training games were canceled and that the start of the regular season would be delayed by at least two weeks.[4] Four days later, MLB announced that the season would be postponed indefinitely, following recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to restrict events of more than 50 people for an eight-week period.[5] This was the first time MLB games have been put on hold since the 2001 season, when the season was paused for over a week after the September 11 attacks.

On July 3, the All-Star Game was canceled because the regular season's start was delayed to late July. Dodger Stadium, which was set to host the game, will now host the 2022 All-Star Game.[6]

On July 18, the Canadian federal government denied permission for the Toronto Blue Jays to play their home games at Rogers Centre this season on grounds that repeated cross-border trips by both the Blue Jays and their opponents would be a major risk due to the higher spikes in COVID-19 cases in the U.S. compared to those in Canada. The Blue Jays then chose to play their home games at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, the home of their Triple-A affiliate Buffalo Bisons.[7]

Schedule

The schedule greatly differs from the normal 162-game schedule. In an effort to reduce travel, each team will play only nine opponents during the regular season instead of the usual 19 or 20. Teams are scheduled to play 10 games against each of their four division opponents. The remaining 20 games of the 60-game schedule are interleague contests. To reduce travel, the interleague division match-ups will be AL East vs NL East, AL Central vs NL Central, and AL West vs NL West.[8] At 60 games, this will be the shortest regular season since 1878.[9]

Several international and neutral-site games originally scheduled for the season have been canceled due to COVID-19:

March agreement between MLB and MLBPA

On March 26, MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) reached agreement on multiple considerations related to the start of the season being delayed, including:[15]

  • The 2020 MLB draft was to be held by July 20 and reduced from 40 rounds to five rounds.
  • Player salaries were pro-rated, based on the length of the regular season.
  • Players will receive full service time for the season, regardless of the length of the season
  • Roster moves were frozen as of March 27, until the season begins.

Possible schedules

The indefinite delay of the season caused MLB to internally consider a number of scenarios for playing the season, as well as analysts suggesting ways it could be done. A shortened regular season, a season with many doubleheaders, and a postseason extending into late November with a World Series at an indoor or warm-weather neutral site were suggested.[16][17]

In early April, Jeff Passan of ESPN reported that MLB was "increasingly focused on a plan that could allow them to start the season as early as May and has the support of high-ranking federal public health officials".[18] The plan would have involved all 30 teams playing games with no fans in stadiums around the Phoenix metropolitan area, including Chase Field and spring training complexes. Players would have lived in isolation at local hotels.

Another report from USA Today baseball writer Bob Nightengale detailed another MLB proposal utilizing the Phoenix metro sites, but with the additional use of spring training sites in Florida, Marlins Park in Miami, and St. Petersburg's Tropicana Field. In addition, the 30 teams would be re-aligned for the season depending on their spring training sites into six divisions based upon their locations in Arizona and Florida and agnostic to the usual AL/NL demarcations and traditional geographic rivalries, effectively making the spring training Cactus League and Grapefruit League regular-season leagues.[19] No interleague play would take place and the designated hitter rule would be utilized for all 30 teams, with the World Series occurring in November utilizing the larger MLB sites.[20]

Disagreement over plans for a shortened season

During May and June, MLB and Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) were unable to agree on a specific plan for a shortened season.

In mid-May the MLB owners proposed a schedule of 82 games, to begin in July, with games to be played without fans in attendance. To minimize travel, teams would play only against other teams in their geographical division, plus interleague games against teams in the corresponding division of the other league. A team would play 13 games against each division rival and six games against each team in the other league's division.[21] Postseason play would be expanded from 10 teams to 14, with each league fielding three division winners and four wild card teams. A designated hitter would be allowed in all games. Teams would have 30-man rosters available for each game. The proposal also outlined safety measures for health of players and staff and a modified compensation plan for players.[22][23][24]

On June 1, the MLBPA countered with an 114-game proposal, with a regular season running from June 30 to October 31, a November postseason, giving players the right to opt-out of participating, a salary deferral plan in the event the postseason has to be canceled due to a second wave of the virus, and a $100 million advance during the second spring training, among others.[25]

Owners then submitted a 76-game proposal to the players on June 8, with the regular season ending on September 27, the postseason ending in October, 75 percent prorated player salaries, and playoff pool money, among others.[26] The MLBPA responded one day later with an 89-game plan with full prorated player salaries.[27] The owners then sent a 72-game plan with 70 percent prorated player salaries, to which the MLBPA replied in a statement on June 13, "Further dialogue with the league would be futile. It's time to get back to work. Tell us when and where."[28] However, the week of June 15 saw the owners propose a 60-game season while MLBPA counter with a 70-game season,[29] which on June 19 was rejected by the owners.

Amid an increase in cases in Arizona and Florida, including positive cases among staff of the Phillies, and a Blue Jays player showing signs of symptoms, it was reported on June 19 that all spring training sites would be temporarily closed for deep cleaning, and all players would be required to test negative for COVID-19 before entering.[30] It was then reported on June 20 that almost all MLB teams had elected to re-locate their training camps back to their home cities.[31]

On June 22, hours after the MLBPA rejected the MLB's offer to play a 60-game season, MLB owners voted unanimously to impose the 60-game plan.[32] By allowing the owners to unilaterally implement such a plan without the MLBPA, both sides retained the right to file a grievance against the other for not negotiating in good faith.[33] On June 23, both sides agreed to health and safety protocols. Players reported to training camp July 1.[34] Due to concerns related to the pandemic, several players chose not to play the season.[35]

Revised 60-game schedule

On July 6, Major League Baseball released the revised schedule for the shortened 60-game season.[36] In the new schedule, teams play 10 games against each of their four divisional opponents in three series, with an unequal number of home games against each opponent (teams will host each opponent either three, four, six or seven times). Each team will have 20 home games for division opponents.[36]

Interleague play will comprise the other 20 games of the schedule, all against the division of the opposite league, temporarily suspending the yearly rotation of which divisions play each other. Like normal seasons in which corresponding interleague divisions play each other (e.g. 2018), teams will play six games against their "natural rival" and three or four games against each of the other four teams in the division.[36] However, for this year only, the Cleveland Indians were paired with the Pittsburgh Pirates instead of their normal rivals, the Cincinnati Reds and the Detroit Tigers were paired with the Reds instead of the Pirates. This was done to reduce travel for all four teams.

The season started on July 23, with two games: New York Yankees at Washington Nationals and San Francisco Giants at Los Angeles Dodgers. The remaining 26 teams opened the season on July 24.[36]

On July 23, MLB and MLBPA announced that the postseason will be an expanded 16-team playoff tournament for 2020 only, instead of the normal 10-team tournament. All first and second place teams in the six divisions will qualify for the playoffs. The final two spots in each league will go to the remaining teams with the best win-loss records. The teams in each league will be seeded by division winners (1–3), division runner-ups (4–6), and best teams remaining (7–8). Seeding ties will be resolved by head-to-head record, intra-league record, and record in final 20 intra-league games, to remove the necessity for additional games. The first round of the playoffs will be a best-of-three series called the Wild Card Series, with all games to be played at the home of the higher seeded team. After that the postseason will follow the usual pattern of five-game Division series, seven-game League Championship Series, and a seven-game World Series.[37][38]

Postponed games

COVID-19 outbreaks among the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals and a positive test on the Cincinnati Reds have resulted in the postponement of 29 games involving the Marlins (7 games), Cardinals (13 games), Reds (2 games), and Philadelphia Phillies (7 games).

The Marlins received confirmation that starting pitcher José Ureña had tested positive and would not be available on July 26, but the team decided to play the third and final game of their scheduled series against the Philadelphia Phillies anyway. After additional Miami players and coaches tested positive, MLB postponed Miami's four-game home-and-home series with the Baltimore Orioles, and Philadelphia's four-game home-and-home series with the New York Yankees, both originally scheduled from July 27 to 30.[39] In order to allow for some flexibility in making games up, the Yankees and Orioles played two games against each other in Baltimore July 29 and 30, moving them up one week from their originally scheduled dates of August 3 and 4. The Marlins later confirmed that 21 players and coaches tested positive.[40] The next series for both teams, the Marlins' home series against the Washington Nationals and the Phillies' series at the Toronto Blue Jays, were postponed. Both series would have taken place July 31 to August 2.[41]

The Cardinals had six positive tests resulting in the postponement of three games at the Milwaukee Brewers from July 31 to August 2.[42] Four additional games, a home-and-home series against the Detroit Tigers originally scheduled for August 3 to 6, were also postponed after an additional seven positive tests were reported.[41] After continued positive tests throughout the next week, the Cardinals' three-game series against the Chicago Cubs, originally August 7 to 9, and their three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, originally August 10 to 12, were postponed. A doubleheader against the Tigers on August 13 which would have been made up games from August 3 and 4 was also postponed.[43][44]

The Reds had a player test positive resulting in the postponement of two games against the Pirates on August 15 and 16.[45]

Standings

Division
American League National League
American League East W L Pct. GB Home Road
New York Yankees 136 0.684 — 7–1 6–5
Baltimore Orioles 118 0.579 2 3–7 8–1
Tampa Bay Rays 129 0.571 2 8–3 4–6
Toronto Blue Jays 79 0.438 4½ 2–1 5–8
Boston Red Sox 614 0.300 7½ 3–9 3–5
American League Central W L Pct. GB Home Road
Minnesota Twins 127 0.632 — 7–1 5–6
Cleveland Indians 119 0.550 1½ 6–4 5–5
Detroit Tigers 98 0.529 2 4–7 5–1
Chicago White Sox 109 0.526 2 2–6 8–3
Kansas City Royals 811 0.421 4 4–4 4–7
American League West W L Pct. GB Home Road
Oakland Athletics 146 0.700 — 9–3 5–3
Texas Rangers 99 0.500 4 7–4 2–5
Houston Astros 910 0.474 4½ 6–4 3–6
Los Angeles Angels 713 0.350 7 4–6 3–7
Seattle Mariners 714 0.333 7½ 3–7 4–7
National League East W L Pct. GB Home Road
Miami Marlins 94 0.692 — 1–0 8–4
Atlanta Braves 1110 0.524 2 7–2 4–8
New York Mets 912 0.429 4 5–7 4–5
Washington Nationals 710 0.412 4 4–8 3–2
Philadelphia Phillies 69 0.400 4 5–8 1–1
National League Central W L Pct. GB Home Road
Chicago Cubs 134 0.765 — 8–2 5–2
Cincinnati Reds 911 0.450 5½ 5–7 4–4
Milwaukee Brewers 810 0.444 5½ 2–6 6–4
St. Louis Cardinals 23 0.400 5 2–1 0–2
Pittsburgh Pirates 414 0.222 9½ 2–6 2–8
National League West W L Pct. GB Home Road
Los Angeles Dodgers 147 0.667 — 6–5 8–2
Colorado Rockies 127 0.632 1 6–5 6–2
San Diego Padres 1110 0.524 3 6–4 5–6
Arizona Diamondbacks 911 0.450 4½ 4–4 5–7
San Francisco Giants 813 0.381 6 3–4 5–9

Managerial changes

General managers

Offseason
Team Former GM Reason For Leaving New GM Notes
Boston Red Sox Dave Dombrowski Fired Brian O'Halloran Dombrowski, whose title was President of Baseball Operations, was unexpectedly fired on September 9, 2019, less than one year after the Red Sox won the World Series.[46]
On October 25, 2019, the Red Sox hired the 36-year-old Chaim Bloom as Chief Baseball Officer, succeeding Dombrowski as head of their baseball operations, with Brian O'Halloran named general manager and reporting to Bloom.[47]
Pittsburgh Pirates Neal Huntington Ben Cherington Huntington was fired on October 28, 2019. Huntington had been the longest-tenured general manager in the National League, as he was hired in September 2007. The Pirates made the playoffs three times during Huntington's tenure after the 2013, 2014 and 2015 seasons.[48] Ben Cherington was hired as the new general manager of the Pirates on November 18, 2019.[49]
Houston Astros Jeff Luhnow James Click On January 13, Luhnow was suspended for the 2020 season after the Houston Astros were involved an investigation over the use of technology to steal signs during their 2017 championship season. He was then fired by the Astros organization.[50] James Click was named the new GM on February 3. He has spent the past 14 years in the Tampa Bay Rays front office.[51]

Field managers

Offseason
Team Former Manager Interim Manager Reason For Leaving New Manager Notes
San Diego Padres Andy Green Rod Barajas Fired Jayce Tingler On September 21, 2019, Green was fired after four seasons with a record of 274–366 (.428) with no playoff appearances. Bench coach Rod Barajas was named the interim manager of the Padres for the rest of the season.[52]

Tingler was named the new manager on October 28, 2019. Tingler had spent the previous five years in the Texas Rangers organization as a coach and a front office executive.[53]

San Francisco Giants Bruce Bochy N/A Retired Gabe Kapler On February 18, 2019, Bochy announced he would retire following the conclusion of the 2019 season after 13 seasons. He led the Giants to three World Series championships in four playoff appearances. Bochy finished with a career record of 1052–1054 (.500).[54]

On November 12, 2019, Gabe Kapler, who managed the Philadelphia Phillies for the past two seasons, was announced as the new manager.[55]

Kansas City Royals Ned Yost Mike Matheny On September 23, 2019, Yost announced that he would retire at the end of the 2019 season. He led the Royals to consecutive World Series appearances in 2014 and 2015, winning the championship in 2015. He had been the manager since May 2010. Yost finished his career in Kansas City with a 746–839 (.471) record.[56]

On October 31, 2019, Mike Matheny, who spent last season as the special advisor to Royals general manager Dayton Moore, was named the new manager of the Kansas City Royals. Matheny managed the St. Louis Cardinals from 2012 through mid-July 2018. He had a career record of 591–474 (.555). He led the Cardinals to the postseason in his first four seasons as manager and won the National League pennant in 2013.[57][58]

Chicago Cubs Joe Maddon Contract not renewed David Ross On September 29, 2019, the Cubs announced that they would not offer Maddon a contract extension following this season. He led the Cubs to four playoff appearances in five years, including the 2016 World Series championship, the Cubs' first since 1908. Maddon finished his tenure with the Cubs with a record of 471–339 (.581).[59]

Ross, who spent the 2015 and 2016 season with the team as a player, was named the new manager on October 24, 2019. Ross spent the last three seasons as the special assistant to baseball operations for the team as well as a baseball analyst for ESPN.[60]

Pittsburgh Pirates Clint Hurdle Fired Derek Shelton On September 29, 2019, the Pirates announced that they dismissed Hurdle after nine seasons with a record of 735–720 (.505) with three playoff appearances.[61]

On November 27, 2019, Shelton, who spent the previous two seasons as the bench coach for the Minnesota Twins, was named the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates.[62] He also spent time as a hitting coach for the Cleveland Indians from 2005 to 2009 and a hitting coach for the Tampa Bay Rays from 2010 to 2016 while also serving as a quality control coach for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2017.[63]

Los Angeles Angels Brad Ausmus Joe Maddon On September 30, 2019, Ausmus was fired after one season with a record of 72–90 (.444). Ausmus served as a special assistant to the Angels general manager Billy Eppler in the 2018 season.[64]

Maddon was hired by the Angels on October 16, 2019.[65] Maddon had spent 31 years in the Angels organization (12 years as a coach) before managing the Tampa Bay Rays for nine years and the Chicago Cubs for five years.

New York Mets Mickey Callaway Carlos Beltrán On October 3, 2019, Callaway was fired after two seasons with a record of 163–161 (.503) with no playoff appearances.[66]

On November 1, 2019, Carlos Beltrán, who played for the team from 2005 to the middle of the 2011 season, was named the new manager of the team. Beltrán was a special adviser to the New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman last season.[67]

Carlos Beltrán Mutual Decision Luis Rojas On January 16, Beltran and the Mets agreed to part ways before managing a game for the Mets, in light of his reported involvement in the Astros using cameras to steal signs.[68]

The Mets hired Rojas on January 22. He has spent the last 13 years in the Mets organization.[69]

Philadelphia Phillies Gabe Kapler Fired Joe Girardi On October 10, 2019, Kapler was fired after two seasons with a record of 161–163 (.497) with no playoff appearances.[70]

Girardi, who served as an baseball analyst for the MLB Network the last two seasons, was hired as new manager on October 24, 2019. Girardi previously managed the Florida Marlins for the 2006 season and the New York Yankees from 2008 to 2017.[71]

Houston Astros A. J. Hinch Dusty Baker On January 13, Hinch was suspended by MLB for the 2020 season as part of an investigation against the Astros using hidden cameras to steal signs during their 2017 championship season; he was fired by the Astros shortly after the suspension was announced. Hinch had a regular season record of 481–329 (.594) with a total of four postseason appearances compiling a record of 28–22 (.560), two World Series appearances, and a World Series championship in 2017, throughout his tenure as Astros manager.[50]

On January 29, the Astros hired Dusty Baker to replace Hinch. He managed the San Francisco Giants from 1993 to 2002, the Chicago Cubs from 2003 to 2006, the Cincinnati Reds from 2008 to 2013, and the Washington Nationals during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. His overall managerial record is 1863–1636 (.532) in the regular season, and 23–32 (.418) in the playoffs, losing the 2002 World Series.

Boston Red Sox Alex Cora Ron Roenicke Mutual Decision Ron Roenicke On January 14, the Red Sox and Cora officially agreed to part ways with each other after two seasons. Cora had been under investigation by MLB over the Houston Astros' use of hidden cameras to steal signs during that team's 2017 championship season (while Cora was the bench coach) as well as under investigation of allegations that the Red Sox engaged in impermissible electronic sign stealing in 2018 (while Cora was the manager). In his two seasons as Red Sox manager, he compiled a record of 192–132 (.593), winning the 2018 World Series.[72]

Roenicke was promoted from bench coach to interim manager on February 11. A longtime coach, his only managerial experience was with the Milwaukee Brewers from 2011 to 2015, compiling a record of 342–331 (.508), with one playoff appearance and a 5–6 (.455) record in the postseason.[73] On April 22, the "interim" tag was removed from Roenicke's title, following MLB's findings about the 2018 Red Sox, which focused on the team's video replay operator.[74]

Rule changes
Further information: Major League Baseball rosters § Changes effective 2020

Permanent changes announced prior to season

The following changes, effective for the 2020 season,[75][76][77] were officially announced by MLB on February 12:[78]

  • The size of the active roster expands from 25 players to 26 players, through August 31.
    • During this time, and during the postseason, clubs can carry a maximum of 13 pitchers.
    • Any team that is playing the second game of a doubleheader or a scheduled neutral-site game (such as the MLB Little League Classic), may carry a 27th player for that game only. This player can either be a position player or pitcher.
  • The size of the expanded roster in September is reduced from 40 players to 28 players.
    • During this time, clubs can carry a maximum of 14 pitchers.
  • Teams must designate players as either "position players" or "pitchers" before the start of the season.
    • Only players designated as pitchers will be allowed to pitch in any regular-season or postseason game, with limited exceptions (such as one team leading by at least seven runs, or the game going into extra innings).
    • Once a position player has pitched at least 20 innings and made at least three plate appearances as a position player or designated hitter in each of 20 games, he earns the status of "two-way player" for the remainder of the season plus all of the next season. Players with this status may pitch at any time during a game. For this season only, any player who met the above requirements in either the 2018 or 2019 season qualifies for two-way status.
    • Players designated as pitchers, if placed on the injured list, must spend a minimum of 15 days on the IL prior to being eligible for activation. Position players may be activated after a minimum of 10 days on the IL. Two-way players are subject to the rules for pitchers. The 7-day minimum on the IL for concussions remains unchanged.
  • Pitchers and two-way players optioned to the minor leagues must remain there for at least 15 days before being eligible for recall to the major league club, rather than the previous 10-day minimum. The minimum option period for position players remains 10 days.
  • A pitcher must face at least three batters unless the inning ends or the pitcher is injured.
  • Managers now have up to 20 seconds to challenge a play (reduced from 30 seconds).

Temporary rules for shortened 2020 season

The following temporary rules for the shortened 2020 season were announced on June 24. Note that some of these additional changes supersede the rule changes which were announced in February 2020. Some of these rules will be affected by the cancellation of the 2020 Minor League Baseball season on June 30, which means there will be no minor league teams for player demotion:[79]

  • Each club could invite up to 60 players to their July training camp. The 60-man pool is comprised of players on the 40-man roster and players currently signed to minor league contracts. Clubs were not required to include all members of their 40-man roster in the 60-man pool. The transaction freeze in place since March 27 was lifted on June 26. Only players eligible to play in the 2020 season could be invited to July camp, and only the 60 players included on the list submitted to the league office may be used by the team in regular season and postseason games for the 2020 season. If a player is added to the 60-man pool via trade, free agent signing, or other transaction, a corresponding transaction must be made to keep the total number of eligible players at 60. Players in the 60-man pool who were not on a club's 40-man roster at the start of July camp must be added to the 40-man and active rosters in the usual fashion before they may play in regular season or postseason games. Those not on the active roster train at another site known as the "alternate training site".[80]
  • The designated hitter is used in both the American and National Leagues.
  • Teams could have up to 30 active players on their opening day rosters. The active roster is reduced to 28 after the first two weeks of the season. Originally, the roster was set to reduce to reduce to 26 players after four weeks, but this reduction was eliminated on August 4.[81]
  • The minimum option period for players optioned to their club's training site is 10 days for both pitchers and position players. The provision requiring pitchers to remain in the minor leagues for 15 days before being eligible for recall to the major league club is not in effect this season.
  • The trade deadline is August 31 (moved from July 31).
  • To be eligible for the postseason, a player must be added to a club's 40-man roster by September 15.
  • Clubs are permitted to carry a taxi-squad of players for away games. Originally, the squad was limited to just three players. On August 4, the squad was expanded to five players. The original rule stipulated that if three players were carried, at least one had to be a catcher. It is unclear if that restriction remains under the new rule.[81]
  • In regular-season games, each half-inning of an extra inning automatically starts with a runner on second base. The runner is the player in the batting order position immediately before the lead-off batter for the inning. (A pinch runner may be substituted for the automatic runner, subject to the usual substitution rules.) Should this runner score, it will be considered an unearned run. This rule does not apply to postseason games.
  • There is a 10-day injured list for both pitchers and position players. The 60-day IL is reduced to 45 days.
  • A separate IL exists for players who test positive for, have symptoms of, or have confirmed exposure to COVID-19. There is no maximum or minimum number of days for this IL.
  • There are no limitations on eligible pitchers. The "two-way player" provisions announced in February do not apply for this season.
  • If a game cannot continue because of inclement weather and it is not an official game (trailing team has played less than five innings), the game will be declared a suspended game, continuing from the point of interruption instead of completely restarting.
  • The postseason is expanded to include eight teams from each league. The first round is a best-of-three series with the better seed hosting all three games. The Division Series, League Championship Series, and World Series remain unchanged.
  • Clubs are required to have an expanded dugout in order to practice social distancing.
  • Spitting is prohibited.
  • Celebrations (such as those after a walk-off hit) must be socially distanced.
  • Pitchers are allowed to use wet rags.

The following temporary rule was announced on July 30, to be effective on August 1.

  • Doubleheaders consist of two seven-inning games. One doubleheader, which was played on July 28 before the rule change, featured two nine-inning games.

Milestones

Batters
  • Aaron Judge (NYY):
    • Became the first player in Major League history to hit five go-ahead home runs in his team's first eight games, hitting two go-ahead home runs against the Boston Red Sox on August 2.[82]

Pitchers
  • Tyler Alexander (DET):
    • Set the Major League record for relievers and tied the American League record for any pitcher by recording nine consecutive strikeouts against the Cincinnati Reds on August 2. He tied the American League record set by starter Doug Fister during the 2012 season.[85]

Miscellaneous
  • Baltimore Orioles:
    • Became the first team in Major League history to record a leadoff double play on August 1 versus the Tampa Bay Rays. This was a consequence of the special rule for this season in which each extra inning begins with a runner on second base; the Rays' Yoshi Tsutsugo, leading off the tenth inning, flew out to left, and baserunner Ji-Man Choi was retired attempting to reach third.[87]
  • Toronto Blue Jays:
    • Became the first team in Major League history to lose a game in which they recorded at least 18 hits and seven home runs, per STATS. They lost in extra-innings 14–11 to the Miami Marlins on August 12.[88]

Uniforms

On January 25, 2019, MLB announced that Nike would become the new exclusive uniform supplier for all MLB teams, under a 10-year deal beginning in 2020. Under Armour backed out of its existing supply agreement as a cost-cutting measure.[89]

Anniversaries and special events
Team Special occasion
All Teams Planned #42 patch for Jackie Robinson Day (April 15; tribute converted to virtual experience on MLB.com/MLB Network)[90]
100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues (August 16)
Gold Ribbons for childhood cancer (August 28)
Patches for Black Lives Matter (Opening Day)
Chicago White Sox "Farmio" patch in memory of radio broadcaster and former pitcher Ed Farmer
Detroit Tigers #6 patch in memory of Al Kaline who died on April 6[91]
Kansas City Royals "DG" patch in memory of former owner David Glass
Milwaukee Brewers 50th Anniversary in Milwaukee
New York Yankees "HGS" patch in memory of Hank Steinbrenner
Minnesota Twins 60th season in the Twin Cities
"RC" patch in memory of Minor League player Ryan Costello (July 24)
San Francisco Giants "20 at 24" 20th anniversary of Oracle Park (24 refers to the address of the park, 24 Willie Mays Plaza)
Texas Rangers First season at Globe Life Field
Toronto Blue Jays #1 patch in memory of Tony Fernández
Washington Nationals 2019 World Series Championship (July 23, initially scheduled for April 2)

Wholesale changes

The San Diego Padres changed the primary colors of their uniforms from navy blue to brown and gold, the team's primary colors from 1969–84.[92]

The Arizona Diamondbacks tweaked their uniforms, including removing the darker away uniforms and the diamond pattern on the uniforms.[93]

The St. Louis Cardinals made changes to their logo as it appears on their caps.[94]

The Cincinnati Reds added a new alternate jersey and a new spring training jersey.[95]

The Washington Nationals added two new alternate hats and one alternate white jersey.[96]

The Milwaukee Brewers introduced new uniforms, including a return to the ball-in-glove logo used as their primary logo from 1978–93. They also switched out their gold color to yellow.[97]

The Minnesota Twins have a new alternate uniform, utilizing their powder blue 1973–1986 road uniform design.[98]

The Pittsburgh Pirates brought back the script "Pittsburgh" from the 1990s on new alternate and road uniforms, along with a gold outlined "P" on their caps.[99]

The Texas Rangers have introduced a new powdered blue jersey along with a powdered blue hat. They also changed the "Texas" wordmark to "Rangers" wordmark on their white jersey. They also revealed a new red hat with the state of Texas on it with "TX." [100]

The Toronto Blue Jays have a new alternate, a modern spin on its 1979–1988 powder blue road jerseys.[101]

Venues

This is the Texas Rangers' first season at Globe Life Field, replacing Globe Life Park in Arlington where they played 26 seasons, from 1994 to 2019. Their first game was July 24 against the Colorado Rockies.[102]

The Miami Marlins converted Marlins Park from a natural grass surface to Shaw Sports B1K artificial turf and the field's fences will be moved in closer.[103]

The Atlanta Braves' SunTrust Park was renamed Truist Park after SunTrust Banks's merger with BB&T Bank into Truist Financial.[104]

Temporary relocation of the Toronto Blue Jays

On July 18, the Canadian federal government denied the Toronto Blue Jays exceptions to the Quarantine Act to play regular season home games at Rogers Centre this season. Although they were allowed to conduct training camp (with stricter protocols than those mandated by MLB, including players being quarantined at Rogers Centre's attached hotel and restricted from interacting with the general public or leaving the site), Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marco Mendicino cited that repeated cross-border travel by players would carry a major risk due to the heightened number of COVID-19 cases in the U.S.[105] Mendicino did not rule out the permission being granted for postseason games, depending on the status of the pandemic in the U.S. by then.

On July 20, the Pittsburgh Pirates offered to accommodate the use of PNC Park as a site for Blue Jays home games.[106][107] However, health officials in Pennsylvania denied permission for this arrangement, citing concerns over additional travel to and from Pittsburgh amid an increase in local cases.[108]

On July 24, the Blue Jays announced that they would play the majority of their home games at Sahlen Field in Buffalo, New York, home of the Jays' AAA affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons.[109][110][111]

Preparations for the team in Buffalo were completed in time for their August 11 game against the Miami Marlins. The Jays' first two home series against the Washington Nationals and Philadelphia Phillies were relocated to the teams' venues of Nationals Park and Citizens Bank Park, respectively (the former in addition to two away games against the Nationals), with the Jays as designated home team.[109][111][112] However, with the postponement of the Phillies series, the team stayed at Nationals Park over the August 1 weekend for workouts in preparation for their next series in Atlanta.[113]

Broadcast rights

Television

National

This is the seventh year of the current eight-year deals with Fox, ESPN, and TBS. Fox was to televise the MLB at Field of Dreams game on August 13. FS1 will televise games on Tuesday nights and on Saturdays both during the afternoon and night. ESPN will televise games on its flagship telecast Sunday Night Baseball as well as Monday and Wednesday nights. Fox and ESPN Sunday Night Baseball telecasts will be exclusive; all other national telecasts will be subject to local blackout.

TBS will televise both American League Division Series matchups, and the American League Championship Series. ESPN will televise seven of the eight Wild Card Series.[114] FS1 and MLB Network will televise both National League Division Series matchups. Fox and FS1 will televise the National League Championship Series, and the World Series will be on Fox for the 21st straight year.

Local

Radio

National

Local
  • The Oakland Athletics were briefly the first MLB team to abandon terrestrial radio in their primary market in favor of internet radio; the team initially carried games on TuneIn via the "A's Cast" channel, with plans for some games to be aired without commercial interruptions. The decision was prompted by competition with other local sports teams for time on stations, resulting in frequent pre-emptions and lowered priorities, and conflicts with regular station programming. The broadcasts were still carried on some terrestrial radio stations outside the Bay Area (with the closest being Sacramento's KHTK).[121][122] However, on July 30, 2020, it was reported that the team had backed out of the arrangement and signed with iHeartMedia to make 960 KNEW the team's flagship station (with its streaming platform shifting to iHeartRadio), beginning July 31. Team owner Dave Kaval cited people having become "budget-conscious" due to the pandemic as having influenced the decision.[123]
  • Entercom's KMNB/Minneapolis will join WCCO as the FM flagship for the Minnesota Twins in an extension of rights until the 2023 season.[124]
  • Chicago White Sox radio play-by-play announcer Ed Farmer, a former pitcher for the team who had been part of the team's radio broadcast staff since 1991, died on April 1 after a long-term battle with polycystic kidney disease.[125] On June 30, the team and its radio network named Andy Masur (the former pre-game host) as Farmer's successor.[126]

Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on production

In order to reduce avoidable travel and the amount of personnel on-site for each game, most MLB broadcasters will commentate away games remotely from either their broadcaster's studio, or their home stadium's broadcast booths. MLB safety protocols mandate remote broadcasts for away games on television, but radio broadcasters may be present on-site for away games if they so choose.[127] Some teams will have their commentators on-site for home games only, and call away games from their studio.[128][129]

Furthermore, the home team's local television rightsholder will serve as the host broadcaster for each game, providing a neutral video feed to media partners (including the away team's local rightsholder, and in some cases, a national broadcaster), which will add commentary, graphics, and other surrounding coverage for their audience.[130][131] MLB Network assisted with providing and using existing infrastructure for this arrangement.[132] Audio from Sony Interactive Entertainment's MLB: The Show video game franchise will be used as simulated crowd noise for all games, and is being played over the stadiums' audio systems on-site.[131]

Fox announced plans to use augmented reality "virtual fans" in its games,[133] while ESPN is leveraging experience from its remote broadcasts of KBO League games over the suspended pre-season.[134][135]

The pandemic has also led to changes in broadcast arrangements for several teams:

  • Due to health risks, the Baltimore Orioles announced that Gary Thorne and Jim Palmer will not call its games for MASN this season.[136]
  • Sportsnet's Toronto Blue Jays color commentator Pat Tabler (who is a U.S. citizen) has taken on a reduced analyst role this season, leaving the team's alternate commentary team of Dan Shulman (play-by-play) and Buck Martinez (color; he normally performs play-by-play on games where Shulman is not present) for all games.[128][137]
  • Prior to the pandemic, the San Francisco Giants and NBC Sports Bay Area had already planned to have color commentator Mike Krukow broadcast 22 NL West road games remotely from the network's studios (with his play-by-play partner Duane Kuiper commentating on-site as normal), since his inclusion body myositis had made him unfit to travel. The need for this arrangement was ultimately rendered moot, with Krukow and Kuiper calling all Giants' games together from booths at Oracle Park.[127][138]
  • On July 31, Texas Rangers radio voice Matt Hicks tested positive for COVID-19, preventing him from broadcasting for the foreseeable future. His partner Eric Nadel subsequently opted out from broadcasting that weekend's games.[139]

Retirements

The following players and managers retired during the 2020 season:

Retired numbers
  • Lou Whitaker will have his #1 retired on August 29 by the Detroit Tigers. He will be the ninth player and tenth individual to have his number retired by the franchise.[143]

Due to the delayed start of the season caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the following retirement ceremonies have been postponed. They will be rescheduled.

Player No. Team Original Date Ref
Larry Walker 33 Colorado Rockies April 19 [145]
Dave Stewart 34 Oakland Athletics May 23 [146]
Roy Halladay 34 Philadelphia Phillies May 29 [147]
Jerry Koosman 36 New York Mets June 13 [148]
Will Clark 22 San Francisco Giants July 11 [149]

See also

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