Baseball fans got the news they’d been waiting for earlier in the week with the official announcement that the 2020 season will be played.
However, things won’t be the same by a long shot.
Not only are there several new safety protocols in place, but there won’t be any fans in attendance.
Detroit Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire spoke of the mandated protocol that non-playing team personnel in the dugout must wear a safety face mask.
“If I have to wear a mask, that’s definitely going to be really different,” he said, “but if that’s what it takes to keep myself healthy and everybody else healthy, that’s what we’ll do.”
And it certainly would be understandable for the 62 year old skipper to do so, given the past health problems that he’s experienced.
“I’ve had cancer and been a diabetic,” Gardenhire said. “I look for people to take care of us that have the knowledge. The doctors and our trainers are letting us know all the information we need, and we’ll go by that.
“Am I uneasy? Yeah, I am. I don’t want to get sick, I don’t want my wife to get sick, I don’t want my family, I don’t want anybody to get sick. Is there a risk? Absolutely. There’s risk involved in this. We all know it.”
Tigers training camp is scheduled to open July 1 at Comerica Park, with games starting July 24.
– – Quotes via Evan Petzold Link – –