West, who is 67 years-old, has a history of high blood pressure, and who is overweight, tells Rosenthal that Major League Baseball expected him to opt-out and was “taken aback” and “shocked” when he told them that he would not do so.
Partially it’s because he wants to set the all-time record for games worked. He’s 65 games of Bill Klem’s record and, if he works 2020, he can set the record early next year. Partially it’s because he’s not concerned about his health, telling Rosenthal, “If this game hasn’t gotten me by now, no virus is going to get me.” He says that he’s lost some weight and that his doctor says his heart is “as healthy as a horse’s.”
It’s also, it seems, because West is something of a COVID-19 skeptic:
“I said, ‘Look, most of these people that they’re reporting are dying are not healthy to begin with. I’ve lost 25 pounds over the winter. I’m playing golf every day in the heat. I’m fine. I’m not going to back down now.’
“I don’t believe in my heart that all these deaths have been from the coronavirus. I believe it may have contributed to some of the deaths. I said, ‘I’m not going to opt out. I’m going to work. And I’m going to work until you take me off the field or I get hurt, whatever. I’m working.’”
Fans can watch, play, and listen all season long on Sportsnet, SN NOW, the Sportsnet Radio Network, the MLB Ballpark app, and by following @BlueJays on social media
The TorontoBlue Jays today announce the 2020 60-game schedule. The team opens on the road on Friday, July 24 at 6:40 p.m. vs. the Tampa Bay Rays, before starting their first homestand on Wednesday, July 29 against the defending World Series Champion Washington Nationals. The regular season concludes at home on Sunday, Sept. 27 vs. the Baltimore Orioles.
The Blue Jays have unpaused the season and are asking fans to get in on the action by cheering them on from home. Fans can watch, play, and listen to their Blue Jays by tuning in to SN and SN NOW; listening on the Sportsnet Radio Network; playing games to win prizes on the MLB Ballpark app; and checking out behind-the-scenes content on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Fans are encouraged to check back often as there will be unique ways for them to connect and engage with the Blue Jays at the ballpark, from home!
While no final decision has been made on a site for Blue Jays regular season home games, the club’s preference remains Rogers Centre. The team continues to pursue this option with the health and safety of the general public and the team at the forefront and will communicate an update as information becomes available.
Donald Trump believes recent controversies have negatively impacted NASCAR’s viewership, but the TV ratings tell a different story. The United States President on Monday lashed out at Darrell Wallace Jr., calling for him to apologize for last month’s noose controversy, which he believes is a “hoax.” Additionally, Trump claimed that the story, along with NASCAR’s…
Canada Day will dawn with two of its cities favoured as the NHL’s playoff tournament hubs – in a league clouded by contract and CBA uncertainty.
July 1, the traditional start of free agent shopping and the league’s new fiscal year, arrives with the cloud of COVID-19 over an unfinished 2019-20.
Late Tuesday, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reported the expectation that signing bonuses due Wednesday would be paid by teams as scheduled, costing more than $300 million US. That still leaves unsettled the handling of players with expiring contracts and a slew of other collective bargaining matters were still being negotiated in an unprecedented long season the league still hopes to end with a 24-team tournament sometime this summer. Participating clubs were to report for July 10 training camps, despite 26 positive tests reported since June 8.
Speaking of the tourney, the prevailing belief Tuesday night was that Las Vegas was losing steam to be a hub. With COVID-19 cases on the rise in Clark County, despite its handy hotel situation, and Chicago the only other city even mentioned as a U.S. locale, the league might have no choice but make its Canadian contenders, Toronto and Edmonton, the hosts. And even if the NHL wanted at least one American stop, the health-conscious players have a say in this, too.
“Canada has been an outstanding model,” hockey analyst Craig Button said Tuesday night on TSN 1050 radio. “When you’re trying to create a bubble environment that minimizes risk to the greatest extent possible, the players want to be in those spots.
“I love the fact the NHL waited and didn’t lock into a city. They said they’d continue to evaluate. Alberta has done a really good job, Ontario has just opened up and you hope they stay on the same lines.”
Button conceded that plans to telecast games via NBC would be strained by current travel restrictions between the countries.
“But the virus doesn’t operate under ideal circumstances, it has a mind of its own.”
Fans won’t be allowed into the rinks anyway and the two cities being two hours apart would allow for multiple games to be broadcast through the day and night.
SBA A BRUINS DEN?
With his team’s record of 5-4 in playoff games at Scotiabank Arena since 2013, Boston coach Bruce Cassidy figures Toronto would nb okay as a hub and wonders if the teams might even meet in later rounds.
“We’ve played well in that rink in the playoffs for the most part, so that’s a positive,” Cassidy told the Boston media this week. “There’s 12 teams from the East so the chances you bump into them? Who knows, right? That would be speculation.
“But I think (SBA) is an advantage (for the Leafs). If someone told me we could play at the Garden, I’d happily do it first and foremost than travel somewhere else. There is not a home crowd advantage, but there is some advantage to being in your own city, your own building, your own locker room. That’s the part I’d disagree with the league, but I don’t think it’s an easy decision to find the right spot.”
ICE CHIPS
Les Jackson is retiring after 33 years with the Stars. Their last link to the Minnesota North Stars and holder of seven different hockey office positions in 33 years, including general manager, Tuesday was his last day in Dallas … It was also Dave Andrews final day as American Hockey League president after 26 years. He’s also retiring, with ex-Columbus Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson taking over … Fans in Buffalo have perked up with news that Rick Dudley is leaving the Carolina Hurricanes after two years as VP of hockey operations. Though many front office positions were eliminated when Kevyn Adams was brought in as Buffalo GM, ex-Sabre player/coach Dudley would be a popular fit somewhere … With no one sure when ‘20-21 will start, the Red Wings have shelved their annual prospects tournament in Traverse City, Mich. The Leafs, who had just begun involvement in Traverse, might stick to a small Eastern Canadian event with the Senators and Canadiens if a rookie event is attempted before next season … TSN’s Rick Westhead reports the NHL has requested author Ken Dryden turn over interviews, notes and records related to his book on the late Steve Montador. After his 2015 death, researchers with the Canadian Sports Concussion Project said the former defenceman had suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Paul Montador, his father, sued the league alleging it promoted violence and profited off of it while not making players fully aware of the effects of repeated long-term brain injuries. In its request for a Canadian court to obtain the material from Dryden, the league said there was information, including aspects of Montador’s life away from the rink, important to its defence.
SEOUL, June 30 (Yonhap) — When fans return to baseball stadiums sometime in July, they will be asked to sit apart from one another to maintain a safe distance. And they’ll not be allowed to bring in any outside food.
This will be part of a new normal in fan experience in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) during the coronavirus pandemic.
The KBO released a new health and safety manual for fans Tuesday, as it prepares to swing open gates to baseball enthusiasts.
A Korea Baseball Organization regular season game between the NC Dinos and the Doosan Bears takes place without fans at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on June 28, 2020. (Yonhap)hide captionpreviousnext1 of 2
The 2020 season opened on May 5 without fans in the stands amid the pandemic, and the league’s 10 clubs have been struggling financially without zero gate revenue. In a welcome relief, the government announced Sunday that sports stadiums would reopen on a limited basis, as long as teams adhere to stringent quarantine measures.
To that end, the KBO put out the manual to ensure safe environments across the league’s nine stadiums.
Fans must wear masks and keep them on during the course of the game. When they stand in a line at the entrance, bathrooms or concession stands, they must maintain a safe distance from others. Teams will put stickers, set 1 meter apart, on their stadium floors to indicate where fans should stand.
Fans must go through temperature checks at the gate, and those who check in at over 37.5 C will be turned away.
Once inside the stands, they must also sit at least one seat from each other, even when they have company.
Though cheering is a major part of KBO fan experience, it will be missing during the pandemic. The KBO manual says singalongs, chanting and other types of cheering that may include contact will be limited.
Tickets can only be purchased in advance online with credit cards, so that health authorities will be able to trace contact information in case of positive COVID-19 tests. Box offices at stadiums will be closed to minimize person-to-person contact.
The KBO said fans will be strongly discouraged from buying tickets from scalpers because it is illegal, and it poses infection risks through direct contact or droplets.
Concession stands will be open on a limited bases but eating from the seats and bringing food from outside will be prohibited. Fans will have to consume their food in the concession areas.
While in their seats, fans will only be allowed to drink water and non-alcoholic beverages.
Teams will only sell tickets to reserve seats at first, and other ballpark amenities, such as children’s playgrounds, will be closed to prevent a crowd from gathering. Smoking rooms will remain shuttered.
Fans will be discouraged from bringing in preschool children due to safety concerns, and those who come in with young children will be asked to take extra care.
“There will be some inconvenience for our fans following these restrictions during the pandemic,” the KBO said. “However, in order to prevent COVID-19 infections and to ensure a safe viewing experience, we’ll need our fans to follow these rules.”
NEW YORK (AP) — The Los Angeles Sparks will be without Chiney Ogwumike and Kristi Toliver for the WNBA season so they can focus on their health the team announced Friday. Ogwumike, the No. 1 pick by the Connecticut Sun in 2014, has missed two seasons to deal with injuries, and with the shortened schedule…
Minnesota Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey told reporters Thursday that a “few” players in the organization have tested positive for COVID-19.
COVID-19 has struck the Boston Red Sox one month before Major League Baseball is set to return. Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom announced Wednesday during a Zoom conference call that a member of the team’s 40-man roster has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier and MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. The…
It looks like we will have a 2020 baseball season after all, at least on the major league level. Yay. (I think.) After several weeks of the most unseemly back and forth possible between the Commissioner’s office and the Players Association, Rob Manfred was expected to lay down the When and Where. The details weren’t…
The view from left field 