Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports that the Rays will open Tropicana Field to players on the 40-man roster for light workouts beginning on Monday. Players will only be allowed to play catch, run, do cardio, and do light weight work. They will not be allowed to throw off mounds, hit in the cages, or use the clubhouse and weight room.
Major League Baseball was suspended in mid-March due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Monday will mark the Rays’ first team-sanctioned gathering since then. As Topkin notes, players will still be limited to small groups and have to adhere to social distancing protocol.
Florida is among the states gearing up for the return of professional sports. California, New York, and Texas recently gave the all-clear. Florida governor Ron DeSantis said on Monday that “getting sports back online is important for our nation’s mojo.”
On Tuesday, the Marlins opened opened their spring training facility in Jupiter for limited workouts. We’ll likely see more and more sites open up in the coming weeks.
