MLB is making it very hard for teams to continue their preparation for the upcoming 2020 season -- whenever that may be -- due to coronavirus precautions. And because of that, Yankees manager Aaron Boone doesn't really see a point in staying at the team's Tampa facility.
Speaking on MLB Network radio on Monday, Boone said it "is becoming harder and harder" for teams to have workouts due to MLB's latest mandate that strongly recommends no group workouts. The team's gym and training facility is still open to players, but those informal workouts that they were participating in have since been banned.
So Boone said he plans on returning to New York on either Tuesday or Wednesday, and do what the rest of us are doing: waiting.
MLB pushed the start of the 2020 season back even further than the April 9 start date. Now, the earliest the season can kick off is mid-May with the league "committed to playing as many games as possible when the season begins." This estimated start date is in accordance with the CDC's latest recommendation of restricting gatherings of more than 50 people for the next eight weeks.
The season had already been delayed at least two weeks, with "social distancing" recommended over the weekend by MLB for spring training workouts for players who remain at team sites.
The Yankees also had the first positive test for coronavirus in their system, with GM Brian Cashman confirming that a minor leaguer had contracted the virus. That player was immediately quarantined on Friday, and the minor league facility has been shut down until March 25.
Cashman also said that he expects a "skeleton crew" to be down in Tampa. And that crew will be without his manager.