In light of Friday’s positive COVID-19 tests at some spring training facilities in Florida, all MLB clubs are moving training camps back to their home cities, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale.
The Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies both reported multiple COVID-19 cases at their respective camps in Dunedin and Clearwater, Fla. The state of Florida has seen a rapid rise in COVID-19 cases in the past week, setting its single-day record several times over.
Nightengale noted that, until Friday, five MLB teams that aren’t based in Florida were still planning to hold spring training there. In Arizona, another state with climbing case counts, the Diamondbacks were the only team scheduled to train.
On Saturday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that the New York Yankees and New York Mets would resume their spring training in New York. The Yankees later confirmed the news.
For the Blue Jays, as the lone Canadian team, returning home for spring training presents an additional challenge. As Sportnet’s Hazel Mae reports, the Canada-U.S. border is closed for another month and a 14-day quarantine when crossing remains in place.
The Canadian government recently granted an exception to the 14-day quarantine — instead promoting a “cohort quarantine” approach — for NHL athletes in the event that a Canadian city is selected as a hub city for the resumption of the hockey season.
Nightengale reported that the Blue Jays might be the exception in terms of teams returning home for spring training due to Canada’s current travel restrictions.
That could also mean they’d have to share a ballpark with the Tampa Bay Rays in St. Petersburg, Fla., for home games.
[relatedlinks]
