Hazen: Home city gives D-backs unique situation

PHOENIX -- The D-backs' Salt River Fields facility will undergo an intense and thorough cleaning over the weekend, and on Monday, Arizona players will have the option of returning to the facility to work out on their own.

“We’re obviously taking every precaution necessary with guidance to ensure the cleanliness and standard of the facility to ensure it’s still a safe environment for everybody,” D-backs general manager Mike Hazen said. “And we believe that it is.”

Following a meeting between Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association on Friday, players were told that they are allowed to leave their Spring Training sites in Florida and Arizona because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Players have the option of remaining in their spring cities, traveling to their club’s home city or returning to their offseason home.

In that regard, the D-backs have an advantage over other teams in that a lot of their players make their homes in the Phoenix area.

“I think we’re in a little bit of a unique situation because for the most part we’re in our home city,” Hazen said. “So, home for a lot of our players is here. And I feel like we’ve felt like our gym, our workout facility, is the home workout facility for a lot of our players through the offseason anyway.”

The D-backs have given staff members the option of going home or continuing to show up at the facility, and they expect that most will remain. They will be able to assist players with their batting practice in the cages, work in the field and help as pitchers continue throwing to keep their arms in shape.

Hazen said that Minor League “players have, for the most part, they’ve been encouraged to head home, just given the sort of lack of formality at this point in training, so that’s how we’re handling the Minor Leagues right now.”

One Minor League player who became ill recently tested negative for the seasonal flu. He was administered a test for coronavirus, and the results have not come back yet.

“We have tested one player out of an abundance of caution,” Hazen said. “We have not received anything back on that. We are not anticipating anything.”

The D-backs have told scouts not to travel to see players by air, but the club left it open to the individual scouts whether they felt comfortable driving for regional scouting.

When asked if he was disappointed by the delay of the season, Hazen put everyone's health first.

“I’ll just say, look, given the situation everyone is in, the health and safety of our fans, of our players, of their families, of our families, of your families, is the concern right now,” Hazen said. “Obviously, we are going to get back to playing baseball at some point. We’re worried about everybody’s health right now.”