Will COVID-19 be the needle that finally bursts the sports bubble?

They'll have to come up with some kind of protocol for sanitizing balls.

 

Or, theoretically, every pitch since the pitcher and and either the catcher or another fielder or two will touch it every time. And every new baseball has to change hands from catcher/ump to pitcher, so when does it become considered unsafe?

 

IMO the owners know damn well there isn't gonna be a season this year, because they don't want a season this year under these circumstances, and are just trying their damndest to make sure the players get blamed for it.

 

These rules are like SEC states' literacy tests before that thing called the Voting Rights Act came into existence.
The players should reject them and everybody should admit that it's not happening. I love baseball, but I wouldn't be terribly excited by a season that will be remembered exclusively for its outlier status in history. (At least we can hope that such a season will be perpetually regarded as an outlier.)

 

Honestly, I would not blame the owners a bit if they just said "we think it's impossible to play this season, so we won't." But they have to try to see if they can strong arm the players because they're warming up for the CBA on the horizon. If I were Tony Clark, I'd tell the members of my union we should move first and announce WE don't think the season should be played because there's no way it can be safe. Of course the members may not feel that way, but that's the smart play.

 

Any season less than 162 (or less than 154 from 1961 back) is an outlier. The only concern is if someone bats .400. That will get an instant asterisk.

 

Restaurants are off-limits on the road!?! Where are they supposed to eat?

 

How are they supposed to hook up with their side pieces with all these restrictions in place?