Being in a state of flux has seemingly been the only constant for Major League Baseball since restricting clubhouse access to players and essential personnel at the beginning of last week in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
MLB then advanced to cancelling remaining Spring Training games and postponing Opening Day for at least two weeks. After that came a ban on organized workouts and team activities, as the league sought to abide by “social distancing” guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Players were given the option to remain at their Spring Training facility, go to the city of their team, or head home. Upon the CDC recommending gatherings of at least 50 people being cancelled for a minimum of the next two weeks, MLB further delayed the start of the 2020 season.
As the league continues to monitor developments, they sent a memo to all teams that called for a temporary halt of all scouting, via Baseball America
“Over the past few days, we have been in touch with Clubs regarding the effects of the spread of coronavirus on domestic and international scouting operation. Although we have not made any decisions regarding the 2020 First-Year Player Draft or 2020-2021 International Signing Period, we are continuing to monitor the situation and will provide guidance to the Clubs on these events as soon as possible.
Many Clubs have voiced significant concerns about the health and safety risks to Club employees and amateur players associated with continued scouting operations in this environment. As a result, effective immediately, the Commissioner’s Office hereby imposes a temporary prohibition on all Club scouting activities, both domestic and international. During this time, Clubs may not hold tryouts (public or private) or attend non-Club amateur baseball events (e.g. games, showcases, workouts). Clubs also may not conduct in-home or other in-person visits or administer any tests or assessments of amateur players that are done as part of the pre-draft or pre-signing process. In addition, Clubs may not encourage players to conduct tryouts, workouts or games that Clubs would be able to watch remotely. These prohibitions will be in effect until further notice.
We appreciate your cooperation as we work to put in place protections that are designed to preserve the integrity of the amateur talent acquisition systems. Any Club that violates these prohibitions will be subject to discipline by the Commissioner’s office.”
As the Los Angeles Dodgers were deciding on plans at Camelback Ranch and Dodger Stadium, they sent their scouts home last week and cancelled upcoming international scouting meetings.
MLB delivering a memo to teams is hardly a surprise, of course it largely was a formality. Considering the current state of the country, there weren’t players or events to scout anyhow.
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