There will be a Major League Baseball regular season in 2020, it will be shortened to 60 games, and it will come with numerous new regulations based on concerns related to coronavirus. Expect new rules related to health and safety that appear to bear a true intent to shield participants from risk related to COVID-19 and others that seem to have little-to-no connection to the virus.
Players will be immediately tested for COVID-19 upon reporting to training camp, which will begin on July 1. They, along with coaches and support staff, will thereafter be tested for the virus every other day during training camp, the regular season, and any postseason play. Individuals who test positive must be quarantined and will not be able to return to normal activities until subsequently testing negative on two consecutive occasions. Additionally, players will have their temperatures taken at a minimum of twice per day.
The aforementioned testing policy makes perfect sense. What is harder to reconcile is a new rule that requires a designated hitter (DH) to be used by every team in both the National League and American League. While a DH has been mandated for use by all American League teams, pitchers have been required to go up to bat in the National League unless a pinch hitter is used, which would then require the pitcher to be substituted for a reliever or closer. MLB does not provide an explanation, but states that the National League will be required to use a DH instead of a pitcher on offense as part of the league’s health and safety protocols.
Perhaps the most interesting new rule is one implemented with the intention to shorten the length of extra-inning games. Instead of starting extra-innings as any other inning would begin, each half-inning will start with a runner on second base. The runner will be the batter who made the final out in the prior inning. This is less of a coronavirus-related rule and instead a rule intended to reduce stress on the players who will be obligated to play a condensed schedule with less time off.
I find the second most interesting new regulation one that actually is concerning COVID-19. MLB team personnel and players who are not likely to participate in a game will not be sitting among their teammates on the bench or in the bullpen. Instead, the league is requiring that such individuals either sit in the stands (which could provide some entertainment value) or in an area designated by the club, as long as the club ensures that the individuals are sitting at least six feet apart.
Setting aside the oddity of playing games in venues without fans or with significantly reduced capacities, expect the atmosphere of game play to change in other ways as well. There will be no spitting allowed nor chewing of tobacco. Furthermore, high-fives, fist bumps, and hugs are totally off limits. I personally cannot wait to see the first player fined for a hug.
Darren Heitner is the founder of Heitner Legal. He is the author of How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, published by the American Bar Association, and is an adjunct professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law. You can reach him by email at heitner@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter at @DarrenHeitner.