Two weeks into what should have been the 2020 baseball season, MLB is looking at options to resume playing sooner rather than later.  The first proposal, to quarantine all 30 teams in the Phoenix area and play to empty ballparks, both Chase Field and the spring training complexes, leaked last week and was quickly pooh-poohed by Rob Manfred after some initial push back.

The newest proposal, which leaked out this morning, is even more radical: realignment for the 2020 season, with all teams based out of their spring training homes.  The American League and National League would be replaced by the Cactus League and Grapefruit League, with teams sorted geographically by the location of their facilities.  Like the earlier Arizona plan, games would be played in the team’s spring training stadiums, as well as the three major league facilities in the states.

Teams could play 12 games against each divisional opponent and six games against the other 10 teams in their league, creating a 108-game regular-season schedule, with the winner of each league facing off in the World Series in November.

This new plan removes some of the hurdles of the Arizona-only plan, with each team housed in familiar surroundings, but increases the risk of exposure to the corona virus by expanding the circle of quarantine necessary to keep players, staff, and other game day personnel safe.  While all of the Arizona-based teams are located in the greater-Phoenix area, the Florida teams are spread throughout the entire state.

As a fan, do I want baseball back?  Of course.  But bringing it back just to bring it back, before it is really safe to do so, not only puts players at risk, it puts the doctors and nurses in those communities at risk.  I don’t think that is worth it.