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As we publish this story, we are literally one day away from Opening Day of the shortened 2020 MLB season, yet the Toronto Blue Jays have no idea where they are going to play their home games. The Canadian Government simply said no to any MLB games due to the pandemic, so the Jays have been searching, all the while Toronto is set to be a hub city for the upcoming Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Late Tuesday night, Sportsnet’s Hazel Mae said it was official that the Blue Jays would be calling Pittsburgh and PNC Park home, but Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf said no so fast.
The Pirates and Blue Jays had reportedly settled on things from a logistics standpoint and turn the left-field lounge into Toronto’s clubhouse while the team would rent out two hotels across the street from the stadium.
According to the Post-Gazette, Wolf nixed the idea due to a significant increase in positive cases in southwestern Pennsylvania.
Here's a statement from the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine: pic.twitter.com/rGkoOH5zND
— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) July 22, 2020
“The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported on Sunday that PNC Park was one of the MLB stadiums the Blue Jays were targeting, and we learned later why they liked Pittsburgh so much — the schedule.
There are just seven conflicting home dates between the teams, and six come Sept. 8 or later.”
The Blue Jays have reportedly looked at playing home games in Buffalo, where their AAA team is located, as well as Dunedin, Florida. With the increase in positive tests in Florida, it’s safe to assume that the team sees that as a less than ideal location.