San Diego Padres: MLB Owners approve proposal for 2020 season

Per reports, Major League Baseball owners have approved a proposal for the 2020 season. This is very good news for San Diego Padres fans.

We noted on Saturday evening that the MLB was finalizing a proposal to present to the MLB owners today, and per reports, it has been approved to present to the Major League Baseball Players Association tomorrow. What does this mean for the San Diego Padres?

Today was definitely the easier of the two hurdles, as the owners essentially had to make sure there were no surprises from the news that was already made public. What was the news, you ask? MLB would temporarily make the divisions regionalized so that NL West opponents would play each other as well as the AL West.

While some teams would still be forced to travel quite a bit (e.g., Seattle Mariners), it allows for teams to play in their home ballparks. And teams like the Yankees and Mets, where the city has become an epicenter for the coronavirus, there is the potential for them to play their games at spring training facilities.

Regarding the MLBPA, tomorrow is going to be a monumental day. The league’s proposal included a clause that players would temporarily take a pay cut to account for the loss of revenue this year. As noted before, I like to think the players will look past that, given that unemployment rates in the U.S. are reportedly close to 20 percent.

I like to believe that the players want some form of a season, some form of a routine that they are used to this time of year.

The World Baseball Classic has already been canceled for next year, which is more the result of global caution. However, leagues like the KBO and CPBL have demonstrated that baseball can resume safely. Some have even allowed as many as 1,000 fans into the stadium in staggered seating and required to wear masks.

MLB may be able to do something similar, but at this point, we should just be grateful for any baseball to return.