I'm not worried about Vlad.
Leading the team offensively are  McGuire,  Jansen, Shaw, Hernandez, Grichuk and Biggio.

So far, Ryu is the worst of the starters because he was left for 2 more batters than needed.

Yamaguchi hasn't been able to get an out.
That is a bigger issue.

4 more Marlins have the covid.

Yankees game canceled again too.

I think Hatch is capable of being a multi-inning, high leverage reliever, similar to what Aaron Sanchez was when he arrived in the big leagues. AJ Cole has looked good, Dolis should work things out; but you could make a case that Hatch would be the 3rd best reliever after Bass & Romano.

I think Reid-Foley is the closest we have to bullpen Sanchez.

Will be interesting to see how the Marlins field a team.
They don't want to put any prospect from the player pool to the active list.
Nor do they want to debut prospects already on the 40 roster.

Seems like they will have to sign a bunch of guys for a week or two.
Aren't there two teams of free agents in Vegas waiting for this?

I wonder if Vlad struggles continue (putrid Sept., hasn't hit a HR since August,lack of conditioning), how long before fans start thinking he's the second coming of Travis Snider.

Less Snider and more this guy, except this guy seems to have a better launch angle.

https://giphy.com/gifs/season-3-the-simpsons-3x17-l2Je48DDnqj5dlBBK

This is an eye-opening example of the limitations of testing. From Bob Nightingale:

"Washington #Nats star Juan Soto is getting increasingly frustrated, his teammates say. He has reportedly tested negative six times_three by MLB and three by the team_but has not had back-to-back negative tests, keeping him out of action.

The Nats had a pretty obvious strategy for Vlady yesterday. In 4 ABs, he saw 15 balls out of zone, 4 borderline strikes, and 2 clear strikes:

1st AB: 5 balls, 1 borderline strike. (K)
2nd AB: 4 balls, 2 clear strikes. (K)
3rd AB: 1 ball, 2 borderline strikes. (Popout)
4th AB: 5 balls, 1 borderline strike. (Lineout)

He has to be more selective and take more walks. If he hadn't swung at all, he could have been on base 3 times last night. Being patient will result in more hittable pitches and likely more borderline calls going his way.

Washington #Nats star Juan Soto is getting increasingly frustrated, his teammates say. He has reportedly tested negative six times_three by MLB and three by the team_but has not had back-to-back negative tests, keeping him out of action.

Definitely strange to have such low test repeatability. But in fairness, seems he has been testing positive quite a bit as well.

He can be frustrated with the testing, but its hard to be frustrated with the league to keeping him out in that situation.

The protocol could read that after two positive tests, the player is out for a 14 day quarantine.  That would be the safe thing to do.

More on the Nats from Rosenthal:

In team vote, vast majority of Nationals players voted against going to Miami for three-game series this weekend, sources tell The Athletic. Decision will rest with MLB.

I think Hatch has frontline starting potential to be honest. Thorton still seems to be tipping his pitches and getting hit hard, he might need to be converted to a setup man and live off his breaking ball, and I would give Hatch more run as a starter.

I think the Jays are banking on Pearson, SWR and Kloffenstein being the playoff starters long term and need to work out a completion between Thorton/Hatch and Kay/Borucki for the back end rotation slots with the losers becoming set-up men.

What about Hyun-Jin Ryu? Or is the playoff window after his contract expires?

I think between injury, ineffectiveness, or age we would be lucky if 3 of Ryu, Manoah, Pearson and Ryu are in the rotation in 2022.

I might have mentioned Kloffenstin, but I meant Manoah.

So what I've read...surface transmission of COVID is rare so going to Philly shouldn't be an issue. Just insist on knowing if anyone on that team has it.

Marlins knew there were cases before playing thus if anyone from the Phillies or the umps at that game get it they should sue that team over it. Disgusting that they played anyways knowing that multiple players had it. I didn't care for Mattingly before this, but now I detest him for choosing to play knowing that a big part of his team had tested positive and that odds were high they gave it to others who now could pass it on to the other team. Disgusting.

Time for MLB to put in new rules - if a player tests positive before a game, it must be disclosed to the opposing team and they have the option to cancel the game with no penalty. Obviously an honour system fails due to too many people having no honour.

The team tests are with machines that are notorious for false negatives.
The MLB test is a saliva test. He could very well be contagious. Even pre-symptomatic.

The Little League protocol is to stay away from the team for at least 14 days once all household members are negative. That could easily take 4-5 weeks.

I assume all players have their own rooms.

3 players tested positive and stayed at the hotel.
It doesn't say if this was from team or MLB testing.
If MLB testing, everyone else would have been told.
If team testing, there are no requirements. Many teams have no private testing, so it's not official.

What's with all the hand washing and sanitizing if surface transmission is rare?

What's with all the hand washing and sanitizing if surface transmission is rare?

This is a new virus. Early on no one was really sure how it transmitted from human to human. As more and more data has become available it seems much less transmission from surfaces and much more through droplets in the air than first thought.

What's with all the hand washing and sanitizing if surface transmission is rare?

Hygiene theater. Something they learned from the TSA post 9/11.

That said, rare is not the same as never, so hand washing is still a good idea.

It's going to be very interesting what happens, not so much with the Marlins, but with the Phillies.

I would not be surprised if positive tests start popping up with Phillies players. That would be worse case scenario for MLB.

But would also not be surprised if the Phillies remain negative. That would be best case for MLB.

I would have thought that transmission to opposing players would be at least as great a risk as transmission to teammates, at least once the season starts and the intrasquad games end.  Perhaps the Marlins transmissions occurred as a result of intrasquad games earlier. 

Phillies are off until at least Friday when the Jays are supposed to play them. Marlins off till at least Monday. Meanwhile the teams they were supposed to play, the Yankees and Orioles, will play against each other tomorrow and Thursday. per MLBTR

Mike, I would guess the Marlin players were indoors together and maskless. To me at least, that has a far greater chance of transmitting the virus than outdoor games where opponents are even fairly close for short periods of time.

Apparently no other players outside the Marlins have tested positive since Soto.

I don't know if you're watching the games, but the players are not distancing while on the bench.
The coaches are supposed to be wearing their masks at all time but they are not.
Masks are optional for the players. They seem to act like all their teammates are in their bubble.
They still celebrate runs and homeruns.

They keep the extra pitchers out of the dugout, but the rosters are current set at 30.

Starting pitchers not involved in a game are sitting in the stand with one seat between them but they seems to be eating popcorn or sunflower seeds. Maybe even sharing.

I think the exposure between teams is minimal. You need to be standing next to someone for 5 minutes. Probably less if the infected person is talking to you. There is a bit of that at first base.
Not much at the plate.  

I see stuff about the health and safety of the players, but if these people are not able to keep their distance during a baseball game, they're not protecting themselves on their own time either.

What if surface transmission is rare because of all the hand washing and sanitizing?

Where can I find the Blue Jays/ Baseball thread? Do we do those anymore?

And Giles has a forearm strain and will be shut down for awhile.

I had T Hatch as my #19 prospect.

With such a short season not many pitchers will meet the parameters to no longer be prospects. But that is something to consider in the off season.

Vladdy with some launch angle.

Missed most of the game, but Roark seems to have had a successful return to DC.
Font was solid, just need to remember never to use him back to back.
Two good innings from Waguespack.

It looks like there's enough there to make a decent pen.
And there's a few spare arms back in the player pool.

I think Hatch has frontline starting potential to be honest. Thorton still seems to be tipping his pitches and getting hit hard, he might need to be converted to a setup man and live off his breaking ball, and I would give Hatch more run as a starter.

Agreed about Hatch. Partially because I just love those stories; unheralded acquisitions of underappreciated prospects, who make adjustments and realize their potential.

Here's to hoping he is found money.

Love to see the rotation end up with Ryu, Shoemaker, Pearson, Borucki, Roark.

Yay, 2nd place tie now. Tied with the teams taking the day off (Yankees & O's) but the blinking Rays won again so still 1 game out of first.

For a laugh - #2 in SB in the majors and #1 in the AL at the moment - Teoscar Hernandez.

Danny Jansen has the best OPS with his 364/462/636 line

Everyone on the team is seeing at least 3 pitches per PA.

Yeah, stats are pretty meaningless at this point, but fun to look at anyways.

Maybe it's worth noting that one of the Phillies clubhouse attendant tested positive yesterday.
He works in the visiting clubhouse.

The Jays will be the home team in Philadelphia on Friday, but they'll be using the visiting clubhouse.
I sure hope they have their own staff with them.

Travis Shaw is on the bereavement list. 

Hopefully not attending a large funeral.
I wonder how quickly he'll be able to rejoin.
 Just 2 negatives 24hours apart? Or not even that?

Bereavement leave covers serious illness of family members as well as deaths. 

Officially, it's called the Bereavement/Family Medical Emergency List.

It covers a death or medical emergency in his immediate family (spouse, child, grandchild, parent, grandparent, or sibling).

A player must remain on the Berevement/Family Medical Emergency List for at least three days, but no more than seven days.

I didn't spot a Covid exception related to that list.
I would have expected some testing before returning to the team.

Juan Soto has been cleared to return by MLB. Still has to be activated by the Nats,

Pearson made it to the Majors very fast if you count out the lost time due to injury. He dominated at every level. Hope he adjusts quickly to the Majors.

I believe Soto is held back by the local/state public health rules.

Another one. So now, 16 of the 33 Marlins who traveled to Philadelphia have tested positive.

It's sounds like it's mostly the Marlins pitching staff who have been hit.
That's good news. The pitchers are the least likely to pick anything on the field.

By the way, Friday's game has been replaced by doubleheader on Saturday.

Good catch, scottt. First reports didn't think to mention Soto still needs to be cleared by the Washington DC Department of Health. Earliest he'll be back is August 1st.

And Strasburg will not pitch in the Jays series. Erick Fedde is scheduled to start the finale.

If Soto isn't back until the Jays are out of town that is great for the Jays. Talk about the perfect time to play the WS champs.

Newest info: union now pushing for 30 man roster all year, 7 inning double headers to help when games cancelled due to COVID ala the Marlins situation. Not bad ideas imo.

BA has updated its top 30 prospect lists. They’re pretty high on the Jays system. Here’s the Jays top 30:

1. Nate Pearson
2. Austin Martin
3. Jordan Groshans
4. SWR
5. Alejandro Kirk
6. Alek Manoah
7. Orelvis Martinez
8. Gabriel Moreno
9. Miguel Hiraldo
10. Anthony Kay
11. Adam Kloffenstein
12. CJ Van Eyk
13. Otto Lopez
14. Estiven Machado
15. Eric Pardinho
16. Shun Yamaguchi
17. Kendall Williams
18. Griffin Conine
19. Leonardo Jimenez
20. Rikelvin De Castro
21. Partrick Murphy
22. Victor Mesia
23. Santiago Espinal
24. Alberto Rodriguez
25. Dasan Brown
26. Reese McGuire
27. Anthony Alford
28. Kevin Smith
29. Joey Murray
30. Yennsy Diaz

Good lord. Fourth inning, man on 3rd and Pearson guns a 99 mpher at the knees for strike 3. This guy is the real deal.

Marvelous symmetry so far tonight: Pearson and Scherzer have each thrown five innings and 75 pitches, with zero runs allowed.

That BA list looks good.

Except for the ultra bizarre placement of Reese mcguire. (Who, for the record, is the same age as Kay and has imo a better milb track record, and has a higher floor at the most demanding position in baseball.

Shouldn’t Hatch be on the list?

Pearson looked pretty good, a few too many balls, but still a very good start.

Romano looks very good too (and got some favorable umpire calls too).

Fun story by Rachel McDaniel on fangraphs.com re: Nate Pearson pitching in Vancouver in 2017

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-summer-nate-pearson-came-to-town/

After getting to watch Hatch and getting some Statcast data on his pitch quality, he seems like a bigger omission than McGuire at 23.

I change my mind, Shun Yamaguchi at 16 is the worst ranking in that list.

Seems bizarre to me that they’d throw a pitcher from Japan they don’t know and who doesn’t know the league into high leverage extra innings game twice in a row. In his first two appearances.

The virus seems to have reduced the number of cameras in the parks. There was no good replay of the Biggio play at second and there was no good view of the triple hit through Vlad.

It looked to me as though that triple was a play that Vlad could have made, not necessarily should but it seemed to be right at him.

Agreed. I thought the Biggio play looked like it may have been an out (I'd think more likely then not) but certainly not close to clear to overturn. And the Vlad non-play at 1st looked like something that could have been caught.

I also thought the catch in lf in the 7th that the commentators were praising Gurriel Jr for the "great catch" was a more routine play that a bad jump and first step turned into the great catch. Also, in the bottom of the 8th they should have stolen 2nd when they were 1st and 3rd with a questionable catcher and that likely would have given them a good chance to avoid the double play.

That non-steal was what bugged me most. If done the Jays would've had 2 in scoring position and a ground ball gets just one out but also a run in. Then the Jays win the game. Sigh. Yamaguchi I've pretty much given up on, but who knows, maybe he'll get things going and be decent for the 5/6th innings or blowouts.

Suppose they successfully steal second, but Hernandez still hits that rocket right at Turner. Chances of Alford scoring from third on that grounder are minimal, so he either stays and it remains 2nd and 3rd, or he's out at the plate. No guarantee the Jays score or win the game.

OK who misses gibby yet.

I’ve missed Gibby since the day before he left.

Yeah, Gibby was better than Montoyo, but that's not saying much. Got to be an upgrade on both somewhere in baseball.

I suppose at the end of the day the Jays needed to score to win the game anyways.

So I'm checking out something on the Jays page on BB-Ref and I noticed that the average age of your Toronto batter this season is 25.4, which struck me as young. Very young indeed. It's the youngest in franchise history, in fact. And down the rabbit hole I went...

As you might expect, the most youthful squads of Blue Jays hitters come from the bad old days when the franchise was brand new. Eight times, the average Jays hitter was aged 27.0 or younger. The team's first six seasons (1977-1982) under three different managers are all among them. Bobby Mattick's 1980 team was the youngest of all (average age 25.8, which wins the tiebreak with Mattick's 1981 squad. If there were additional decimal points, we'd probably see it for ourselves.)

The two additional teams are Montoyo's group from last season, which was another group of young players on a building (or rebuilding team) and - the one real outlier - Cito Gaston's 1990 team. That team won 86 games and finished a very disappointing second. They gave more than 600 plate appearances to 34 year old Mookie Wilson, who was definitely past his best-by date. But George Bell was the only other 30 year old who saw regular action, and John Olerud (21) and Junior Felix (22, supposedly) made up for that.

The only groups of hitters whose average age was over 30 were three John Gibbons teams (2007, 2016, 2017) and the oldest of them all, the Gibbons team of 2008. Gaston, of course, took over that group in mid-season but his work actually resulted in the team getting younger. It doesn't quite comport with his legend but his major lineup changes that year involved getting Adam Lind into the lineup and David Eckstein out. As for the others - the 2016 and 2017 teams were trying to run back the glory of 2015 even as Bautista, Martin, and Encarnacion all hit age 33 and higher. And the 2007 team featured not one but two 39 year old DHs (Thomas and Stairs) who both, somehow, managed to be in the lineup most days.

I think there's an excellent chance the 2020 team will still be the youngest of all by the time this brief "season" is over. Last year's squad, which was quite young to start with, gave out more 800 plate appearances to players on the wrong side of 30 (Smoak and Sogard) and another 400 plus to a 29 year old (Galvis.) Those guys are all gone, and Travis Shaw is now the only 30 year old on the team.

Still, the steal gives the Nationals a chance to throw the ball away.
Maybe they concede second base and the Jays get another shot.
Maybe they go after Fisher and Alford has a chance to score.
I don' t  see the downside with the Jays' fastest runner on third and a good runner at first.

This game had to be won in regular time.
That was a tough call because of Swerzer and 3 regulars missing.
I don't want to see more extra-inning baseball this year and I hope that they don't convert the doubleheaders into 7 inning games.

Anyway, we got Ryu tonight and Strasburgh isn't quite ready.
No need to save any bullpen arms for Friday.

Gaviglio improves his ERA from 81.0 to 27.0.
Yamaguchi improved his ERA from infinity to 36.0.
Baby steps.

Thanks Magpie. Hopefully youth means development and development means better teams in 2021, 2022 and on.

On the plus side, they are playing 500 ball against two playoff level teams, and have had a chance to win every game. Not a bad start for a young team, frustrating as it’s been at times.

scottt, I'd also have wanted the stolen base, but I was simply replying to John Northey who said "Then the Jays win the game. Sigh." which is far from a guarantee.

Also.. maybe they go after Fisher and he's caught, and Alford doesn't go. Or maybe Alford goes and they cut it off and get him out at the plate. Nothing is guaranteed.

Doesn't help that Bo, Shaw and Grichuk are out, but our hitting has been as poor as our pitching has been good. The team leader by wRC+ so far? That would be Derek Fisher. I don't think that's a good thing.

Pitchers appear to be ahead of hitters at this point.

The MLB as a whole is hitting just 229/312/394. Toronto is a good piece below this at 222/276/368.

MLB teams scored 4.83 runs/game last year. They are at 4.55 this year.

Yeah, but the Jays have faced the Nats and the Rays, 2 teams with good pitching.

Pearson had an incredible 1st game. He matched Scherzer which is a very good sign. I am hoping he can do 7 innings in a few games this year. Not sure where they will stop his pitch count per game this year.

Jays Phillies series postponed. I will not type the words I am uttering now.

Nats were scheduled to play the Marlins, so they'll be idled for 4 days as well.
I suppose the Jays could keep playing Washington, but the Nats might prefer to play Miami later.

Not to belabour the point, but I do reflect on this daily; why on Shawn Green's Earth would they not just do bubbles with hub cities? Just a puzzling strategy, given the facts on the ground.

Its been discussed ad neaseum, but there were many approaches that could have been employeed. They just picked the worst possible one.

Almost every major sports league in North America and the world were able to cobble together a plausible plan. Very frusterating.

Almost any city with half a million people probably has the required 8-10 NBA sized courts. Most high schools have one.  They can quickly be fit with proper flooring and rims, since those are easily transported. The NHL needs a similar number of facilities, but hell, every almost Canadian city with 400,000 people has more than enough regulation sized rinks (no fan space needed). Retrofitting to NHL standards is relatively quick and easy.

MLB needs at least 8 regulation fields, and that is playing on each twice a day. Those facilities exist, but mostly where spring training is. And Florida seemed like a bad idea, and Arizona in mid-summer is close to suicidal to play during the day. The MLBPA would not have allowed it, quite properly. MLB-sized and quality ballparks are not common. And cramming more than 2 games a day on a single field would quickly deteriorate those fields (think last week of wimbledon grass).

Now, should MLB have gone with maybe 4 hubs, closed bubbles, in LA, New York,  Chicago, and Florida (locations don't matter as long as there are 4 MLB-quality fields)? Of course. But does all evidence point towards MLB being run by short-sighted idiots? Yes.

First cancelled games of the year for the Jays.. I find I have almost no interest, at all, in non-Jays MLB content, because this is increasingly not a real season and I have few attachments to other teams.

I believe that is 9 consecutive home opener losses.

I was at the last home opener victory in 2011. Pre-game there was a banner revealing ceremony to honour HOF-elects Pat Gillick and Roberto Alomar. I was there with my late brother - happier times.

In the 3 losses the Jays have so far they have scored a total of 6 runs? Sounds like our record is about right.

Do you know the minimum number of games each team plays in the NHL?

It's a big 0.

Bichette brought back some memory.
When my son was 12, we were playing a tournament in the boonies.
First game, first pitch, he hits a foul ball, throws his bat and gets a warning.
Second pitch, he hits a line drive to the outfield, throws his bats, hits the ump in the head an gets thrown out of the tournament.

He spent the next hour in the batting cage working on his grip while we  pleaded with the officials to allow him to play  in the other games. We won all of those and the trophy is on my mantle piece.

Looks like the Jays could get Dany Jimenez back - the Giants have designated him - hopefully he's not claimed (pass on him Marlins).

I believe he has to be offered back to Jays initially.

I missed that the Blue Jays face the Marlins in their Buffalo opener on August 11.  Great.

No, any team can claim him with rule v rules still applying before he's returned to his original team.

Fangraphs has an article up on Pearson's outing last night. There are a bunch of video clips of his pitches for those who weren't able to watch the start live.

Can someone talk some sense into me so I'm not worried about Vlad?

Kieboom probably should have been awarded home there.

"Hatch and Kay can't pitch back to back days"

"Let's throw Yamaguchi out there again. Maybe he won't suck today.'

Hitting is down league wide right now, pitchers are generally ahead of the hitters.

....with that said how far into the season does Hernandez’s second half of 2019 keep extending into 2020 before his bat starts looking legit.

Can someone talk some sense into me so I'm not worried about Vlad?

In last year's all-star game, he used up most of his allotment of high launch angle swings. He should be getting in a fresh batch in a year or two.

I have always thought Vlad was brought up prematurely. If next season has minor leagues playing, a few months at AAA might do him good if still struggling. It happened to Carlos Delgado with success and could work in this instance as well.

Now if something encouraging about Vlad is wanted, I just saw a graphic showing that he has the 3rd and 4th hardest hit balls in majors so far this season. Stanton has 1 and 2.

Can someone talk some sense into me so I'm not worried about Vlad?

I think it's all been just a little too easy for him so far. I don't think the game has really challenged him until now. His raw talent was enough, all he had to do was show up.

I'm not even all that worried about Yamaguchi - yet. I think some period of adjustment should have been expected. I'm a little more worried that Montoyo seems to think the mop-up guy on a 90 loss team is a high-leverage late inning reliever, but what do I know?

This is the toughest part of the schedule. The opponents are good. They're stuck on the road.
The important part is to stay healthy. They were in every game.

In reality, most hitters do worst when moved to the DH.
Vlad can hit the ball in the air, but he cruised throw the minors by hitting line drives to left.
It's going to take some time.

Shaw is probably back by Tuesday.
I'm not sure how it's counted, but the rosters will go down to 28 by Thursday or Friday.

Agreed with Magpie. The minor leagues did not test Vlad at all. He will have to figure it out himself at the Major league level. Still only 29 ABs.

Yamaguchi needs time to adjust. So do many others that have little experience. Drury has to prove what he is capable of in the AL East.As a veteran he will be given some time. Fisher and Alford are starting from zero basically.

And now the Cardinals have a covid outbreak.

At this point, it's pretty obvious that MLB protocols were insufficient.  I won't be watching any more baseball this season, as I don't like providing encouragement to recklessness.

"I won't be watching any more baseball this season, as I don't like providing encouragement to recklessness."

Also, the Jays have the weekend off :)

Seriously, I understand where you're coming from, Mike. I do miss the entertainment value (plus, sports make for great background noise while I'm doing crosswords), as Classic Jeopardy reruns aren't quite cutting it for me. But, I have discovered the novels of Steph Cha, and read the first 2 of her Juniper Song trilogy. I then ordered a third of hers from the library, assuming it was the final book in said trilogy, but "Your House Will Pay" is a bit heavier than modern-day LA noir. I do have the third book in Katherine Arden's Winternight trilogy waiting for me as well, at least that one is owned, so I won't have to rush through it to get it back to the library.

My wife and I watched the first season of Warrior Nun. Spoiler alert - there are plot twists in the season finale!

Thanks for the book recommendations, mathesond.  Between books and streamed movies/TV shows, I am good for entertainment.  I do have to figure out what I'm going to do for cardio once the weather makes running at the outdoor track impossible.  Likely it'll be a machine in the basement.

I've actually been doing cardio to Fitness Blender videos on Youtube - I have to keep them low-impact so as not to annoy our downstairs neighbours, but I do feel good afterwards. I generally do 2-3 10 minutes videos, but they have longer ones as well. Heck, I've actually dropped 5 or so pounds since I began working from home in March!

I have discovered the novels of Steph Cha

This bloody pandemic has cost me a fortune in books. Read one good one, buy two or three new ones. The pile is out of control and not about to be tamed any time soon.

I've actually dropped 5 or so pounds

That clearly makes you a bad person. We are all supposed to be in this together, so if it means we all sit and snack and have to move to the next hole in our belts (when we bother wearing pants at all), then we all do so. Not a team player, it would seem.

Jim Crane appears to be trying to resurrect the Astros are the victims narrative.

I do believe that the Yankees were doing something.
Too many replacement players with career years.
And it's the players who was coming from the Yankees who can up with the scheme.

In other news, too many players not following the rules, high fiving, spitting, not wearing masks, sitting too close and that's just what we can see on TV.
I guess there are no enforcement mechanism. Maybe the PA didn't agree to them.

From Jeff Passan:

"Rob Manfred told MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark on Friday that if the sport doesn't do a better job of managing the coronavirus, it could shut down for the season, sources familiar with the conversation told ESPN."

At least there will be sports this weekend if you want to watch hockey or basketball. The NBA is more than 3 weeks into the bubble and zero cases thus far. I'm actually optimistic on their chances. Hockey has a real shot at completing their season as well. Highly doubt baseball will be able to complete their season. Simply too many opportunities for players especially, but other personnel also, to bring the virus into clubhouses.

It's just Manfred trying to get the message across to the players to follow the rules.
Too much high fiving, spitting, sitting together, no mask on the bench, etc...
And we don't see what goes on off the field.
It's sad to say, but 8 year olds in little leagues are doing better than the pros.

Baseball has played over 50 games. NHL isn't close to that.
MLB was doing OK when the players were in camp.
I haven't heard of any infections in the player pools, either.
Being in cities with lower infection rates help, but it only takes one player.

Sam Gaviglio has been optioned according to the Jays transactions. Not sure of any other move or if he just needs reps with the reserves.

I'm guessing both: Gaviglio will continue to get reps; Travis Shaw must be activated by Monday and the spot will likely go to him.

I am interested in seeing how the rotation is when play resumes. Ryu has under performed. But he is their Ace. Shoemaker, Pearson and Roark have been great. The pen will be rested.

Lorenzo Cain has just opted out, joining Isan Diaz of the Marlins who did the same yesterday.

From Shi Davidi twitter:

Amid latest positives with #Cardinals, worth noting Erie County has put stringent around games #BlueJays games in Buffalo. In a July 30 statement Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz & Health Commissioner Dr. Gale Burstein said “it was confirmed by MLB representatives....that players, coaches, and all other visiting team staff will not be allowed to leave their hotel except to go by bus to Sahlen Field or the airport, and, with the exception of team congregate dining purposes within the hotel, may not leave their hotel rooms.”

Diaz is one of the few Marlins who didn't test positive.
He's either lucky, anti-social or he was already exposed earlier.

They did  a test in BC to figure out  the percentage of people who contracted the virus versus the number of people who actually tested positive and it was something like 9 to 1.
Also, by the time the original Marlins lineup is back on the field, they'll have achieve herd immunity.
Or pretty damn close.

So why opt out now?
I'd guess he just want out of the hotel.
If I understand correctly, the positive Marlins are going back to Miami to quarantine while the negative ones are stuck in self-isolation in Philly.

Where'd you see that BC data, Scottt? I thought data from that US Aircraft Carrier indicated 2.5 to 1...in a young, fit sample too.

I read a study this morning that indicated 78% of recovered Covid cases still had sustaining myocarditis.

"Diaz is one of the few Marlins who didn't test positive.
He's either lucky, anti-social or he was already exposed earlier."

Here's another one. Maybe he did his best to follow the rules, but saw many of his teammates acting like a bunch of covidiots. So either he would have to stay away from his family till after the season or risk exposing them to the virus if he continued playing. Or opt out to safely be with his family.

Yoenis Cespedes is missing. Didn't show up for the game today and the team can't get hold of him.

Roberto Osuna left last nights game with arm discomfort and has gone back to Houston for an MRI.

On the TV, a while back. The results of serological testing.
The US carrier was about asymptomatic testing, not the same thing.
It depends on several factors, but the most important is probably the testing accessibility and I thought BC was doing very well on that front.

I guess he's opting out.

Addressing the media after the Mets' 4-0 loss to the Braves, the second-year GM said Cespedes was declining to play over "Covid-related issues".

Marlins have claimed Brian Moran off waivers.

Haven't heard anything on Dany Jimenez though. My guess is he'll be back with the Jays.

"Yoenis Cespedes is missing"

It sounds as if he ghosted the Mets. Very 21st-century way to break up with your team.

They went looking into his hotel room and it was cleaned out.
Then his agent contacted the team during the game.
He's hitting .161 with 2 homers.

From MLBTR:

Rule V draftee Dany Jiménez cleared waivers and was returned to the Blue Jays organization after being designated earlier in the week, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle

That's cool.
I guess Borucki is the lefty in the pen right now.
Davis takes a 40 roster spot.
Shaw is probably back Tuesday.

Rotation is now Shoemaker, Ryu and Pearson.

Cespedes was not happy about getting benched. His contract was incentive driven and that seems to be the reason for his theatrical exit.

My wife is waiting to get tested.
I'll wait for my eventual physical.

CTV News has new data for Ontario regarding Covid-19 blood tests done in June.
They say 1.1% of the population had been infected. Up to 1.5% in the GTA, down to 0.3% in Northern Ontario.
That's about 4 times the number of positive cases.

Apparently, there are pictures of Cespedes hanging out at the mall on Sunday.

Man, I better opt out. There's a big sale at Best Buy!

Seems more than a few longtime Batter's Box posters appear to have opted out this season.

Gonna play a shell shocked Braves team tomorrow. Mike Soroka tore his Achilles attempting to cover 1st. Gone for this season and maybe longer.

Im not renewing my season tickets. Picky reason for this is due to the quality of the experience more so than Covid. Traffic, comfort of seats and length of games are all the major factors into my decision.

Practical reason, and probably the biggest other reason is the quality of broadcast and home theatre equipment. The 4K image and sound is better than the ball park experience at this point as I can switch games and teams.

The fundamental reason is my investment in a pool instead for my wife and daughter.

I still follow this thread though it's inundated with Covid talk, which I understand, though I tend not to engage when that happens. Maybe there's more posters who are just opting out of Covid speak. The season is only a few days old after all for the Blue Jays.

Seems more than a few longtime Batter's Box posters appear to have opted out this season.

Well, basketball and hockey actually seem to be making it all work - so far - although, in fairness, they're just trying to complete seasons that were already largely in the books. Still, doesn't exactly make baseball look good by comparison.

To the extent that irresponsible behaviour by the players has itself been a contributing factor - someone might observe that the Canadians and Europeans who make up the majority of NHL players, and the African-Americans who make up the majority of NBA players seem to have behaved with far more good sense than the white boys... ah, never mind. I expect pro football to be just as messed up as baseball.

Wife, daughter, yourself and pool. Excellent choice. Back in the day Expo 67? and Science center they had an incredible room that maybe moved. Seemed real to me.

Wonder if I could be in CF backing up in case of miscue??

Co-worker tore his last year. They opted to skip surgery and it took over 6 months to reattach.
Tore again after a couple of month and went straight to surgery.
Has looked fine since.

For Soroka, hopefully it won't affect his baseball career.
Might need to take it easy in the offseason though.

Well, 4 days without games made it hard to talk about the Jays.

Many factors to consider.

Will rosters still shrink?

At the end of Aug how many games will each team play. 20 for 1 team, 30 for another. The standings will look weird.

Baseball standings assume each unplayed game is worth half a win.
However, the final standing will be based on winning percentage
I think there will be an effort to catch up on missed games through doubleheaders, especially for interdivision games, but we'll have to see.

I expect the rosters to shrink.
You can shuffle pitchers with the taxi squad if needed.
The Jays are giving priority to Shoemaker, Ryu and Pearson.
It's going to be harder for Roark and Thornton, but I expect that they are throwing side session to keep in sync.

It still seems that MLB is going to try to squeeze in a full 60 game season wherever possible; the in-season introduction of 7-inning doubleheaders is the last-ditch effort to enable teams to make up entire lost series. However, Rob Mandred conceded that not all teams may play 60 games. In fact, his direct quote was: "If it turns out that some guys play 60, some guys play 58, they have this new thing called winning percentage. We can sort that out." (NOTE: I just love that he called winning percentage a "new thing"; a good illustration of his credibility among fans right now).

The Marlins, Phillies, and Cardinals MIGHT need to make up 6-8 games over the season. If they do; it will likely come in the form of consecutive doubleheaders, with perhaps as many as 6 games (42 innings) in 3 days. I think that puts them at a big disadvantage vs. other teams playing on a normal schedule. Conversely, I think it's a big advantage (at least for this season) if the games are canceled outright, as winning percentage becomes the most deciding factor, not total wins. Teams with .500 records will be in the playoff picture for sure... a 25-25 team might get in over a 29-31 team.

Stephen T provided a link in the Covid thread that seems to go a long way in explaining both the outbreaks and lack of outbreaks. Both the Marlins and Cardinals had major spread within their teams. But none of the opposing team players were affected in either outbreak. The primary driver of spread are indoor activities.

"The entire traveling party got a little too comfortable," Jeter added. "... Guys were around each other, they got relaxed, and they let their guard down. They were getting together in groups. They weren't wearing masks as much as they should have. They weren't social distancing."

they have this new thing called winning percentage

Manfred is behaving as if he occupies some kind of high ground. He should perhaps try a little humility and wait til he has built up enough currency to warrant wiseass answers.

The list of infected Cardinals include Molina, the primary catcher who has played every game so far. Ouch.
Also Dejong, the regular shortstop, Ravelo, the backup middle infield who has only played in one game and Sosa, a 20 year old middle infielder who hasn't played yet. That leaves them without a shortstop in their 60 player pool.

2 of the other 3 guys are middle relievers, easier to do without.

If they don't make up the games and go by winning percentage it will matter which teams are skipped in the schedule because it will further unbalance the schedule strength. If you miss teams that are better than average, giving you credit for your winning percentage helps you. If you miss teams that are worse than average, giving you only credit for your winning percentage hurts you. If the standings treat them as "half a win" this also hurts most playoff bound teams (that average a winning percentage more than .500).

And apparently Osuna will need TJ. For a second time.
So Giles might still have more trade value.

Yeah, Osuna is going for a second opinion. The thinking at MLBTR is that if he does require TJ, the Astros may well cut him loose after this season, since 2021 is their last year of control.

Union telling players that roster size will reduce to from 30 and 28 on Thursday and remain at that level for the rest of the season and postseason, source tells The Athletic. Taxi squad will be expanded from three players to five players for remainder of the season.

That makes a lot of sense in anticipation of playing lots of doubleheaders.
Taxi squad players get paid, but don't accumulate service time.
Pitchers on the taxi squad can throw bullpen to stay sharp, but position players can only take BP.