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It may have seemed inevitable, especially once the NBA suspended its season yesterday afternoon, but MLB has now followed suit.
After a conference call among owners this afternoon, Major League Baseball is expected to suspend spring training. The league likely will delay the beginning of the regular season as well. At this point, it's a formality that ownership-level sources expect to happen.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 12, 2020
Passan reports MLB suspending operations indefinitely. pic.twitter.com/AXRgZ8T7HN
— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) March 12, 2020
Details about how this all might shake out are anyone’s guess at this point, though more information might be forthcoming shortly. Presumably, MLB will issue a release of some sort in the coming hours or days.
Stay tuned, as this gyre has only started widening at this point.
UPDATE: Spring Training cancelled. Opening Day pushed back at least two weeks. World Baseball Classic Qualifiers postponed indefinitely.
2020 Opening Day to be delayed by at least two weeks; Spring Training Games cancelled beginning today; and @WBCBaseball Qualifier games postponed indefinitely due to the national emergency created by the coronavirus pandemic. pic.twitter.com/yCgUHkdfpF
— MLB Communications (@MLB_PR) March 12, 2020
Spring Training is over. An abundance of necessary caution abounds. And Peter O’Brien is your 2020 Grapefruit League Home Run Champion.