Each offseason, promotional directors from minor league teams around the country meet to brainstorm—among other things— ways to utilize their ballparks on days without baseball. With the 2020 season currently suspended and highly unlikely to begin at all, executing those ideas has become paramount.
No games means no fans, which means almost no revenue for each of the 160 minor league teams above the Rookie complex levels. Layoffs and furloughs have been commonplace across the industry, but the employees who remain are hard at work trying to make the most of their facilities as states and cities begin easing the social-distancing restrictions that were put in place to try to quell the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.
In most years, these types of events were supplementary. Now, with a probable 19 months between games, they’ve become essential.
Over the first two months of when the season would have been played, the Pensacola Blue Wahoos of the Double-A Southern League have led the league in innovation and creativity. The peak came in late May when the team unveiled a first-of-its-kind idea.
They turned their ballpark, which abuts Pensacola Bay on Florida panhandle, into an Airbnb.
“We’d been working on it for about three weeks (or) so. The big thing was just trying to figure out all the logistics of bedding and those types of things” Blue Wahoos president Jonathan Griffith said. “Once we got everything secured and knew that we could actually put this on, that’s when we finally came out with the news for it.”
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Esta historia es de la edición July 2020 de Baseball America.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Wood Has Towering Upside- Nationals rookie James Wood also stands 6-foot-7 and also has game-changing power.
Aaron Judge and Oneil Cruz are 6-foot7 sluggers who stand out for their power in this year’s MLB Best Tools voting. Wood spent half of this season with Triple-A Rochester before making his MLB debut on July 1. While he was in the International League, he captured managers’ attention. Wood unanimously won Best Power Prospect and also claimed Most Exciting Player in a survey of league skippers. Wood hit .353/.463/.595 with 10 home runs in 52 games for Rochester. His .242 isolated slugging was the best for a player 21 or younger at Triple-A this season.
ROAD BLOCK?
Scholarship expansion puts mid-majors at a major disadvantage on the road to Omaha
ROYALS REVIVAL
A revamped and rejuvenated farm system has Kansas City ready to rebound
SUMMER STANDOUTS
The top prospects in summer college leagues are poised to impact the 2025 draft
FLORIDA COMPLEX LEAGUE TOP 10
Last year’s Florida Complex League prospect crop has been beset by lengthy injuries to many of its top players, including Yankees pitchers Henry Lalane and Carlos Lagrange, Mets infielder Marco Vargas and Red Sox catcher Johanfran Garcia.
IN WITH THE NEW
The 2024 draft is in the books. The trade deadline is history.
WALCOTT BLASTS OFF
It took some time for Rangers shortstop Sebastian Walcott to find his footing at High-A Hickory.
A RECORD NIGHT FOR COLLEGIANS
Four key takeaways from the 2024 draft
K.C.MASTERPIECE
Shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. wins games for the Royals with his bat, glove, speed and baseball IQ. He might be the most tooled-up player in the game.
HOW THE MAJORS HAVE CHANGED FOR YOUNG PLAYERS
When negotiating the 2022 Collective Bargaining Agreement, the MLB Players Association prioritized the earning power of young major league players, especially young stars.
