Minor League Baseball announces delay to start of season

Joining Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball announced on Thursday that the start of the regular season -- scheduled for April 9 -- would be delayed. The announcement doesn’t say for how long. The full text:

In light of the current coronavirus outbreak, and after consultation with medical professionals and our partners at Major League Baseball, Minor League Baseball will delay the start of the 2020 Championship Season. We will continue to monitor the developments and will announce additional information about the 2020 season at a later date. We will work with Major League Baseball and our community partners to resume play as soon as it is safe to do so. The health and safety of Minor League Baseball fans, players, and executives is our top priority, and our thoughts are with those around the world who have been affected by this outbreak.

Minor league players, who already weren’t being paid for spring training, may have to go a little while longer without pay, it seems. Given that everyone will be hunkering down for a while, it may be difficult for them to find paying work in the meantime, as they often take side jobs that require interacting with the public like bartending, rideshare driving, and instructing. If you can find a way to help support minor leaguers in the meantime, please do so.

With the suspension of Spring Training and the potential financial impact on @MiLB players, we will be donating the proceeds of all @GLBatCo apparel sales this month to @esim69 and his @ChipotleTweets gift card initiative! https://t.co/egQ5ApKiSi

— Great Lakes Bat Co. (@GLBatCo) March 12, 2020

In light of the recent news, many players could be without paychecks until early-to-mid May. We're raising money to support players struggling financially during this time. Donate here: https://t.co/f9RwlNcb0d

— MindReady (@mindready_co) March 12, 2020

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