Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays announced Friday they will make Buffalo, New York, their home for the abbreviated 2020 MLB season.

Team president Mark Shapiro issued a statement on the move:

"We are extremely grateful to have a home in Buffalo this season, thanks to the openness, creativity, and partnership of the Buffalo Bisons, Major League Baseball, and Blue Jays staff, who have worked tirelessly to prepare us for games at Sahlen Field. This has no doubt tested our team's resilience, but our players and staff refuse to make excuses—we are determined to take the field on Opening Day today, and for the coming months, with the same intensity and competitiveness that our fans expect."

New York Gov. Cuomo told reporters Friday he had spoken with MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred about the idea and had his "fingers crossed" that the arrangement would soon be finalized.

According to MLB Network's Jon Heyman, Sahlen Field—the home field of the Blue Jays' Triple-A affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons—requires some work to meet MLB specifications:

The Blue Jays had to find a new home stadium after the Canadian government ruled they couldn't play at Rogers Centre in Toronto. The concern centered on visiting teams arriving from the United States, which has experienced a surge in the COVID-19 pandemic throughout the summer.

The franchise initially looked at PNC Park in Pittsburgh but met resistance from Pennsylvania state officials:

Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore was the next option.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan confirmed to the Associated Press' Rob Gillies and Brian Witte that negotiations with the Baltimore Orioles about the plan were ongoing. The Blue Jays balked at the fact they couldn't begin playing at Camden Yards until September, per ESPN's Marly Rivera.

This isn't the first time officials from Toronto and Buffalo have worked together for sporting reasons. The NFL's Buffalo Bills played a handful of games at Rogers Centre in effort to widen their reach north of the border. The series was scrapped in 2014 and largely considered to be a disappointment.

Moving the Blue Jays to Buffalo, which is about a two-hour drive from Toronto, makes sense given the circumstances.

MLB restructured each team's schedule to cut down on travel as much as possible. The Jays have 40 games against teams within their division and 20 games against teams from the National League East.

As Heyman noted, playing MLB games in a minor league stadium presents a few logistical problems, but Buffalo represented the most obvious central hub with Toronto off the table.

The Blue Jays begin the season Friday against the Tampa Bay Rays, and they'll have their first home game Wednesday against the Washington Nationals.

The Baltimore Orioles have reportedly given the Toronto Blue Jays their approval to use Oriole Park at Camden Yards as their home ballpark during the 2020 season.

According to MLB Network's Jon Heyman, the Blue Jays still need the state of Maryland to approve the motion in order to make it official.

The Jays have been in search of a home park for this season for the past several days on the heels of the Canadian federal government refusing to grant them permission to use Rogers Centre because of the coronavirus-related risks that would come along with visiting teams entering the country from the United States.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said the following regarding the possibility of allowing the Blue Jays to play in Baltimore, per Rob Gillies of The Associated Press: "We've had some discussions with the Orioles. I don't know the final details of that. Obviously we're watching our numbers very carefully every day. We're concerned about the spikes in other states."

It appeared Wednesday—for a few hours at least—that the Blue Jays would be able to call the Pittsburgh Pirates' PNC Park home for the 2020 campaign. It seemed like an ideal fit because of the location in proximity to most AL and NL East teams, as well as the fact that the Jays' and Pirates' schedules matched up well.

However, the plan fell apart when the Pennsylvania state government denied the proposal because of the COVID-19-related risks that would have come along with another team playing regularly in the state in addition to the Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies.

Other options that have been considered include playing games at the Jays' spring training facility in Dunedin, Florida, or at Sahlen Field—home to their Triple-A affiliate, the Buffalo Bison.

Both of those options come with downsides. Dunedin has quality facilities, but with COVID-19 hitting Florida hard, it may be too risky to base another MLB team in the state.

Buffalo is close to Toronto and played host to many of the Blue Jays' players when they passed through Triple-A, but the lighting and replay functionality are considered subpar compared to Major League ballparks, and Blue Jays players have expressed a desire to play in a Major League venue.

Baltimore may represent Toronto's best and last chance to find a permanent Major League home for the 2020 season, especially since the regular season opens with two games Thursday night.

The Blue Jays start with a three-game set on the road against the Tampa Bay Rays and a two-game road series against the Washington Nationals. Their first home game is scheduled for Wednesday against the Nats.

If Maryland does not approve the proposal, then the Blue Jays may have to play at opposing teams' home parks for every game this season. In designated Blue Jays home games, they would bat second.

A lack of fans makes home-field advantage less important than usual, but the comfort level teams have in their own parks could give them an edge over the Jays if Toronto is forced to play on the road for the duration of the 2020 season.

The Toronto Blue Jays will not be calling the Steel City their temporary home after all.

According to ESPN's Marly Rivera, the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced Wednesday that the Blue Jays will not be allowed to play their home games at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. 

Pirates president Travis Williams issued a statement on the decision, noting that he was "extremely proud" of his staff's effort throughout the process:

ESPN's Buster Olney and The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal first reported the Blue Jays were looking into new sites to stage games after the state of Pennsylvania was not going to give the necessary approval.

According to Jeff Passan of ESPN, Baltimore is one possible alternative:

The Canadian government prohibited the Blue Jays from playing at their usual home, Rogers Centre in Toronto, for the 2020 season because of concerns about incoming teams potentially spreading the coronavirus.

With the start of summer, a number of states across the United States relaxed their coronavirus-related guidelines and restrictions. As a result, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has surged in nearly every state.

Canada, on the other hand, has found more success in limiting its new cases.

With Pittsburgh no longer an option, Baltimore would be a natural location to pursue since it is a fellow American League East team.

Along with limiting the season to 60 games, MLB altered the structure of each team's schedule to limit travel as much as possible. The Blue Jays will have 40 games against AL East teams and 20 games against NL East teams.

Regardless of where they end up, the Blue Jays are in a race against the clock to find a solution. They open the year Friday on the road against the Tampa Bay Rays, and their first "home" game is July 29 against the Washington Nationals.

PNC Park will reportedly be home to more than just the Pittsburgh Pirates during the 2020 MLB season.

According to ESPN and Hazel Mae of Sportsnet, the Toronto Blue Jays will play the majority of their home games at PNC Park after Canada's federal government ruled it was too risky for them to play at Rogers Centre.

ESPN added an official announcement won't be made until it is approved by the Pennsylvania state government.

The Blue Jays announced Saturday they would not be playing in Toronto:

Rob Gillies of the Associated Press reported Canada's federal government made the decision after the city and provincial governments gave the Blue Jays clearance to play the season as scheduled. The United States has been a hotspot amid the COVID-19 pandemic, and Canada decided that preventing back-and-forth crossings to the U.S. throughout the season—even a shortened one—was in the best interests of public health.

It did not take long for Pittsburgh to emerge as a potential landing spot. Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun called PNC Park a "clear front-runner," and Jon Heyman of MLB Network noted it "looks increasingly likely to be the Jays' home park in 2020."

Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette also reported PNC Park was a possible temporary home and noted there are only seven times throughout the season that the Pirates and Blue Jays are scheduled to play at home on the same day.

Six of those games come Sept. 8 or later, which means Major League Baseball has time to reach a solution.

According to ESPN, one potential solution to avoid overlap will have the Blue Jays move their Sept. 7-9 home games against the New York Yankees to New York, where they will be able to stay since they follow that up with a three-game series against the New York Mets at Citi Field from Sept. 11 to 13.

Mackey reported the home of the Blue Jays' Triple-A team in Buffalo, New York, and the team's spring training site in Dunedin, Florida, were also candidates. Yet there were concerns about Buffalo's "quality of lights and their ability to handle a major league game."

The Blue Jays start the season on the road against the Tampa Bay Rays and are scheduled to play their first home game Wednesday against the Washington Nationals.

They are looking to bounce back this year after finishing in fourth place in the American League East in each of the last three seasons following appearances in the American League Championship Series in 2015 and 2016.

There may be Major League Baseball games at PNC Park in Pittsburgh that don't feature the Pirates during the 2020 season.

According to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Toronto Blue Jays are exploring the possibility of playing some of their home games in the Pirates stadium after the Canadian federal government said they could not play in Toronto.

Mackey noted the Pirates are home on the same day as a Blue Jays' home game just seven times in the shortened 60-game season. What's more, six of those games come on or after Sept. 8.

Toronto is also exploring playing in Buffalo, New York—where its Triple-A team plays—and Dunedin, Florida, where it plays spring training games. However, Mackey pointed out there are some concerns about the ability of Buffalo's stadium to handle a major league game given its quality of lights.

On Saturday, the Blue Jays announced they will not be able to play their home games at Rogers Centre:

Rob Gillies of the Associated Press reported the federal government determined as much even though the city and provincial governments gave the American League East team clearance. Canada was concerned with the players consistently crossing back-and-forth to the United States since the country has been such a hotspot for the coronavirus.

As of Sunday, there have been more than 3.7 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the United States. That, along with the more than 140,000 deaths, is the highest number for any country in the world.

The Blue Jays are scheduled to start their season Friday against the Tampa Bay Rays, and their first home game is July 29 against the Washington Nationals.

Less than one week before the start of the 2020 Major League Baseball season, the Toronto Blue Jays announced they will not play their home games at Rogers Centre.

Rob Gillies of the Associated Press first reported the Canadian federal government had denied the Blue Jays' request to host games in Toronto because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Gillies noted that the Blue Jays previously received clearance to play at the Rogers Centre from city and provincial governments, but the federal government was the final body that had to sign off before it could become official. 

Per Laura Armstrong of the Toronto Star, the Jays will use Sahlen Field, home of their Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo, this season. 

Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News reported last week that Blue Jays officials have some concerns about Sahlen Field, including "social distancing in the clubhouses, workout rooms and batting cages, repairs needed to bullpen phones and the fact the pens are in foul territory down the lines and not behind the outfield fence."

Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca noted the Blue Jays at one point hoped to use their spring training complex in Dunedin, Florida, as an alternative if they couldn't use Toronto, but they would now "prefer to avoid" Florida because of rising coronavirus numbers. 

The schedule does give the Blue Jays additional time to navigate this situation. They will play their first five games of the regular season on the road against the Tampa Bay Rays (July 24-26) and Washington Nationals (July 27-28). 

Toronto's first home series of the season will be against the Nationals from July 29-30. 

Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown released a statement Sunday saying he is "in total support" of the Toronto Blue Jays potentially playing their 2020 home games in the United States city.

Mike Harrington of the Buffalo News shared the statement:

Buffalo is among the locations the Blue Jays are considering as they attempt to figure out how to play the 2020 season. The franchise has been hopeful about playing in Toronto, but border restrictions between the United States and Canada have made that appear unlikely. 

As Brown's statement noted, the border issues also present a potential problem for the Blue Jays in seeking a potential home in the states. 

Harrington previously reported the Jays are considering playing in Buffalo, which has a minor league stadium that could accomodate the club. He noted there could be concerns regarding the lighting and broadcast viability for games.

Unlike the NBA and NHL, MLB is not having a centralized hub to play its 2020 season. Teams are playing a regional schedule against opponents only from their division and the other league's same corresponding division. Despite the limited travel, teams will still have to travel through air and stay in hotels, potentially putting players at risk.

The Toronto Blue Jays are taking steps to maximize Vladimir Guerrero's strengths as a hitter by easing his defensive burden starting this season. 

Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo told reporters on Friday the 21-year-old will be moved off third base to "to focus on [first base] and [designated hitter]."

When Guerrero was making his way through the minors, two things most scouting reports agreed on was his ability to hit and his limited defensive skill set. 

"The knock on Baby Vlad is that he's probably a DH in the long run," Keith Law wrote on ESPN.com in Jan. 2019. "He's enormous, and though he's a good athlete for his size, he has gotten so big so quickly that it's hard to imagine him at any position, let alone third base, where he isn't quick enough on his feet to play now and brings only a plus arm to the table."

Despite having essentially no defensive profile, Law ranked Guerrero as the No. 2 prospect in MLB heading into last season. It's a testament to how highly-regarded he is at the plate. 

Jim Callis, Jonathan Mayo and Mike Rosenbaum of MLB.com wrote last year that Guerrero is "one of the best offensive prospects we've seen."

Among 24 players with at least 800 innings at third base last season, Guerrero ranked last in FanGraphs' defensive value (-8.0) and Ultimate Zone Rating (-9.4). 

Guerrero did post a promising .272/.339/.433 slash line with 15 home runs and 69 RBI in 123 games as a 20-year-old rookie in 2019. 

Toronto Blue Jays players reportedly face significant penalties if they violate rules during the 2020 Major League Baseball season. 

Per TSN Sports' Scott Mitchell, players have been told they can be fined $750,000 and potentially serve jail time if they wander outside of the hotel and ballpark this season. 

The level of discipline is in line with pre-established quarantine rules set by the Canadian government during the coronavirus pandemic. The fine and jail time are the maximum sentence allowed and Mitchell reported players have been told that's what they'd face for breaking the rules "no matter what."

Given the quarantine and travel restrictions in Canada, which require anyone coming into the country to self-isolate for 14 days, it was unclear if the Blue Jays would be allowed to play home games at the Rogers Centre. 

The Canadian federal government granted the Blue Jays an exemption, with the organization developing a quarantine area between the Rogers Centre and the Toronto Marriott City Centre Hotel overlooking the stadium. 

The Blue Jays are currently holding summer camp in Toronto. They will open the regular season on July 24 against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Their first home game will be on July 29 against the Washington Nationals. 

Toronto Blue Jays catcher Reese McGuire has reached a plea deal in his public masturbation case.

Per TMZ Sports, a spokesperson for the State Attorney's Office in Pinellas County, Florida, said McGuire was ordered to pay a fine and court costs for disorderly conduct, a second-degree misdemeanor, after pleading nolo contendere. 

Per the official police report obtained by Alex Raskin of the Daily Mail, McGuire was arrested in Dunedin, Florida on Feb. 7 after local authorities responded to a call that the Blue Jays catcher was "sitting and masturbating in a white Mercedes SUV in the parking lot" of a Dollar Tree. 

Police said McGuire "did not attempt to deny anything" and he was formally charged with misdemeanor exposure of sexual organs. 

A plea of nolo contendere means the defendant accepts punishment but doesn't admit or deny guilt. 

"The Blue Jays are aware of the recent police incident involving catcher Reese McGuire," the team said in a statement on Feb. 12. "He has been in communication with the club and we are working to gather more information. Out of respect for the legal process, neither he nor the club will comment any further at this time."

McGuire was a first-round draft pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2013. He made his MLB debut in 2018 and has appeared in 44 games over the past two seasons.