Several Bucs to stay at camp with ST suspended
BRADENTON, Fla. -- Approximately 40 Pirates players and members of the coaching staff will remain at camp in Bradenton, Fla., after Spring Training operations were suspended Friday around Major League Baseball.
The Pirates will have their Spring Training facilities at LECOM Park sterilized and deep cleaned for a second time Sunday, with the team planning to hold a light workout on Monday.
The Pirates reported to LECOM Park and took part in a workout Friday afternoon, much the same as they might have done prior to their originally scheduled night game against the Twins. Then they gathered in their clubhouse to discuss the fallout from Thursday’s announcement that Spring Training games had been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic and that the start of the season would be delayed by at least two weeks.
Players were initially instructed to remain in the Bradenton area through at least Sunday, according to Jameson Taillon, the Pirates’ representative to the MLB Players Association. About four hours after Taillon said that on a conference call with reporters, however, MLB announced that all Spring Training operations had been suspended, effective immediately.
While many Pirates players decided to stay at camp, they also had the option to travel to Pittsburgh, with PNC Park presumably available to them; or they can return to their offseason homes. Players began meeting with general manager Ben Cherington and manager Derek Shelton on Saturday morning, and some planned to leave Florida and return home as early as Saturday night.
“Obviously first and foremost, everyone just wants to stay safe, stay healthy, then we can figure out all the baseball stuff later,” Taillon said. “There’s a lot of moving parts here. I think it’s just going to be different for everybody.”
Taillon noted that it is essentially an individual decision based on personal preference. An established Major Leaguer with housing (and a guaranteed roster spot) might be best served moving on to Pittsburgh. Players with families might want to return home during this downtime. A rehabbing pitcher like Taillon, for instance, will feel most comfortable in Bradenton because he can work directly with the club’s training staff.
“My elbow doesn’t really know that there’s a virus going around, so I still have to look out for that while looking out for my safety,” Taillon said. “But I do like the idea of guys having the option to go home, just because so much is up in the air right now.”
The Pirates opened up their facility for a voluntary workout on Saturday, and they are expected to shut down the clubhouse on Sunday. Players spent a lot of time Friday asking questions of team president Travis Williams, who is in charge of the club’s day-to-day options; Cherington, who must chart a course for the baseball operations department through this unprecedented event; Shelton, who is reconfiguring the team’s schedule; and Todd Tomczyk, the club’s director of sports medicine.
“In a way it was a little eerie, just working [at the ballpark] knowing there was so much uncertainty,” Taillon said.
Taillon fielded a number of questions from reporters that echoed the concerns players expressed during their meeting. They talked about where they might hold camp when they reconvene to prepare for the start of the season, for instance, with Taillon calling it a “wait-and-see situation.” They asked how to support stadium workers and others who might be impacted by the cancellation of spring games and the postponement of regular-season games, too.
“We understand this game affects more than just us,” Taillon said.
Taillon said none of the Pirates have been tested for COVID-19, another topic of conversation during their meeting Friday.
“At this point, there’s no need to test anybody. We’re all healthy, thank God,” Taillon said. “But I think MLB and MLBPA have discussed options for getting guys tested and making sure there’s a treatment plan in place. With us being in Spring Training, yes, we have team doctors and stuff, but we don’t have our usual healthcare providers with us. I do think they’re kind of working on the infrastructure with that, but for the time being, there’s no testing and no one that’s had to stay away from the field or anything on our end.”