The 2020 MLB season begins on Thursday and the Toronto Blue Jays are still without a home stadium. After being barred from playing in Canada, the team’s plan to play at PNC Park in Pittsburgh has now been denied.
Where will the Toronto Blue Jays play?
The Blue Jays learned this past week that they wouldn’t be allowed to play at the Rogers Centre in Canada this season due to non-essential travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fortunately, the club reportedly found a home at PNC Park and would share the stadium with the Pittsburgh Pirates. However, per The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and ESPN’s Buster Olney, that plan quickly fell apart on Wednesday.
Before the Blue Jays can make PNC Park their temporary home, MLB needs approval from Pennsylvania’s governor. While the two parties are talking, time is running out with the club set to play their first home game on July 29.
The Blue Jays should be spending their final days preparing for the 2020 season, but the stadium issue continues to spiral out of control. Facing new uncertainty, the club has started exploring alternative sites to play at this season.
One of those options, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan, is playing at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. However, the team could run into the same issue with home games aligning with the Baltimore Orioles and Maryland’s government officials balking at another team playing in the state.
Unfortunately, according to Buster Olney, the worst-case scenario is now being discussed. Rather than finding a temporary home for the 2020 season, the Blue Jays might have to spend the entire 60-game schedule on the road.
This would obviously impact the players, coaches and additional staff members on the team. The Blue Jays would be forced to constantly travel for each series, whether it’s scheduled as a home or road game, adding extra stress and risk of contracting COVID-19.