League will hold a 60-game regular season starting in July
After months of turmoil, it looks like we are finally going to get a Major League Baseball season this year. Early this morning, the MLB officially announced its return-to-play plan which will feature a 60-game regular season. Players will be expected to report for training starting on July 1st. The league plans for the season to begin on either July 23rd or July 24th.
The decision was reached during a unanimous vote that was held on Monday by all 30 MLB clubs. The league then asked the Major League Baseball Players’ Union to confirm that players will arrive for training starting on July 1st, which the union agreed to on Tuesday.
The 60-game schedule was submitted to the Players’ Union for review. Under the plan, each team will participate in ten games against their four division rivals as well as 20 more games against opponents located in similar geographical areas. MLB.com said that a perfect example of this would be that NL East teams will face AL East Teams.
For most of Spring Training 2.0, teams will conduct practices and workouts at Major League ballparks. Recent Coronavirus case spikes in Florida and Arizona caused all 30 Spring Training facilities to be shut down for deep cleaning.
Many new rules have been instituted for the abbreviated season. First, both leagues will adopt the designated hitter rule for 2020. Players will be paid a full prorated portion of their 2020 salaries. Also, during regular-season games that go into extra innings, each half-inning will begin with a runner on second base.
