Coronavirus

Former Yankee Announces Retirement During Lockdown

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There have been a lot of players to don the New York Yankees pinstripes. Some of them have long-lasting careers with the Yankees, some of them just have a cup of coffee in the Bronx. One of the latter just announced his retirement from professional baseball today.

Mark Reynolds Announces his Retirement Yesterday

Playing 36 games for the Yankees in 2013, Mark Reynolds announced his retirement on Sirius XM. While being a late season acquisition from the Indians, Reynolds faired respectably at third base in a season that was tumultuous at best for the Yankees at that position (this was the season that A-Rod was found guilty in the Biogenesis scandal, and initially suspended for more than a full season of baseball).

Reynolds had the dubious honor of leading the league in strikeouts from 2008 to 2011. Personifying the modern approach to hitting, Reynolds retires with almost 700 more strikeouts than hits, with one-fourth of his hits being home runs. He also had three seasons batting below the Mendoza line, including his abbreviated final season in Colorado, with his best season coming two seasons earlier in Colorado. He would spend a season in-between in Washington.

The First Domino to Fall?

Reynold’s decision came during the current sports shutdown in the wake of the coronavirus. When asked about his decision to retire, Reynolds cited the time he’s been able to spend with his family during this shutdown:

“With all that’s going on and with everything, I’ve been really enjoying time with the family. It’s time for me to move on and find something else to do.”

It’s worth noting that Reynolds was also a free agent during all of this.

While his career statistics certainly don’t jump out at you, teams could be desperate to sign someone like Reynolds by what would be the halfway point this 2020 season, or even sign him to a minor league deal by the time teams broke from camp to kick start their campaigns. And while Reynolds was closer to 40 than most teams prefer, what would this mean for players similar to Reynolds, who hasn’t had the opportunity to have a career even half as long as he had? Certainly, some players hoping for a deeper playing reel to improve their stock before this year’s draft are going to be looked over, due to the fact all spring sports were canceled in college.

Whatever may end up happening, Reynold’s decision may usher in a swath of players who would rather move on from sports now, rather than hang around hoping they can rebound from last year. Because we still don’t know when that will be.

New York Jets: Sam Darnold self-quarantining with two other QBs

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In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold is self-quarantining in Orange Couty with two fellow throwers.

The idea of two AFC East quarterbacks in relatively close quarters sounds like an intriguing sitcom concept. For Sam Darnold and Josh Allen, it’s a new reality.

According to a report from Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated, Darnold is currently stationed in Orange County in Southern California, self-quarantining in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Joining the New York Jets quarterback is his Western New York counterpart Josh Allen, as well as new Washington Redskins thrower Kyle Allen.

Breer’s report states that Darnold and the unrelated Allens had been working out in SoCal since the Super Bowl. The recommendations of self-quarantine in the wake of the outbreak has them currently working together in Orange County. Darnold is living in a house he recently purchased, while Josh and Kyle Allen live with their significant others in a separate house. The group is training under former UTEP and NFL quarterback Jordan Palmer.

“This is really how we lived anyway,” Kyle Allen told Breer. “It’s just 24/7 now. It’s an interesting time. You talk to some people, and they’ll say the football part of it is similar to the (2011) lockout year, we might have nothing until camp. And maybe we’ll look around the league in August, and there’ll be some teams that took advantage of the time, and some teams that didn’t. That’s the most interesting part.”

The passing trio’s days mostly consist of throwing on the nearby beach and working out in the garage of a friend of their trainer. While it’s early to speculate on the status of the upcoming NFL season, offseason workouts are likely to be delayed or canceled outright. The situation is particularly tough on Kyle Allen, who was traded to Washington from Carolina earlier this week. He and Josh Allen’s lease on their California home expires this week, but Kyle Allen isn’t sure when he’ll be able to get in the Redskins’ Virginia territory due to travel concerns left in COVID-19’s devastating wake. Kyle Allen remarked that rooming with Darnold could be an option.

Darnold’s career with probably be closely linked with Josh Allen’s for years to come. The pair each went to AFC East rivals during the 2018 draft and will now compete to see who can unseat the New England Patriots from the divisional throne. They’ve faced off against each other twice so far, with Darnold taking a December 2018 meeting in Buffalo. Allen opened last season with a win over Darnold and the Jets at MetLife Stadium en route a wild-card playoff berth.

Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

Update on the Brooklyn Nets in Quarantine

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Brooklyn Nets, Spencer Dinwiddie

Obviously, the biggest news of this suspended season for the Brooklyn Nets has been Kevin Durant and the other 3 anonymous Nets players who contracted Covid-19. KD put out an optimistic message last Tuesday regarding his status, and Quinn Cook gave an update yesterday (Cook’s full quote) regarding his friend’s Durant’s positive mentality towards everything.

Let’s check up on how several Nets players and coaches are doing in Quarantine with the help of Twitter and some other media outlets:

  • Spencer Dinwiddie on his favorite thing to do during the quarantine: “Be a Dad.” Bleacher Report grabbed the quote from Dinwiddie and posted a picture of Dinwiddie and his son here. Dinwiddie took issue (sarcastically) with the angle the picture was taken, tweeting “Expressionless faceI don’t like this camera angle. Y’all made the greatest baby in history look like he has a wide face… Unamused faceI love you son.” Spencer has been one of the more active Nets on Twitter.

 

  • Garrett Temple has decided to use this forced break to hone in on his preparation for Law School. Temple recently told YES’s Michael Grady during an interview that he has “been practicing for the LSAT Prep.” (NY Post article here) Temple went on to say “I’m a person who’s thought about going to law school when I finish playing, and what’s a better time than now to be able to put in 3-4 hours a day of studying for a test that allows me to get into law school. That’s what I’m doing right now.” Great to see Temple is improving his skills off the court.

 

  • Deandre Jordan hasn’t been too active on Twitter, but his profile is extremely telling of what he’s probably been up to during this break. His profile bio reads “1/4 Twist Boy I love Judge Judy, Netflix, and Gluten-free Cookies.” (Deandre Jordan Twitter)

 

  • Adam Harrington, an assistant coach for the Brooklyn Nets, seemed to share Dinwiddie’s sentiment, as he tweeted “There is no doubt I miss my / our normal routine. I miss everything Nets, & miss the NBA! But I am absolutely loving my family time with wife & kids. In our profession this is almost impossible and it has allowed me some INCREDIBLE time to be a hand on / present FATHER!🙌🏻 (Adam Harrington Twitter

This is a quick recap on just a few members of the Nets organization. Follow Fireside Nets on Twitter for all your latest updates on everything Brooklyn Nets.

What COVID-19 Is Doing to NY Athlete’s Bodies

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Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets

When the Brooklyn Nets announced that 4 of their players tested positive for COVID-19, the coronavirus, it was more evidence as to 1) Just how quickly this disease spreads, but 2) Just how little testing was made available in this time of a health crisis. And when Kevin Durant announced, after showing no symptoms synonymous with the disease, that he was one of those 4, it only will inevitably delay the restart to the 2020 season. By how long? I’m not sure. But I feel like it’ll be closer to May before we see the NBA start up again.

So, let’s take a look at what the research is telling us is doing to these Nets players, as well as those two confirmed Yankee minor leaguers.

This Is NOT Like the Flu

A terrible misinformation campaign surrounded initial reporting of the coronavirus in this country. Without getting overtly political, many were pontificating that the coronavirus (which originated in China) was a political left wing conspiracy to bring down the president. But one that persists today is that the “coronavirus is just a respiratory flu, and that more people die from the flu than the coronavirus.”

According to emerging research, both statements are wrong.

According to National Geographic and backed up by The Atlantic is that COVID-19 has much more in common with SARS than it does with the flu. And that COVID-19 is 23 times more lethal than the common flu.

What COVID-19 is inevitably doing to our New York athletes is puncturing holes in their lungs. While they won’t experience the same collapsed lung that Aaron Judge experienced, it does explain reporting out of China that patients are recovering with 20-30% less lung capacity. And it also explains the scar tissue being discovered in American patients.

Now, unlike normal respiratory infections (which infect either the upper or lower airways) is that this disease, which originated from SARS-CoV-2, infects both upper and lower airways in individuals.

Again, I’m frustrated with just how much of normalcy was taken away from us in response to this pandemic. But medical professionals are just that, professionals. They’re paid to research and understand diseases because they know more about it than the rest of us. Just like athletes who excel at a particular sport are paid to play the game. Trust me, you do NOT want to see me in right field for the Yankees, as I’m a fraction of the player Aaron Judge is, when healthy. The fact that this new information is coming out shows a scary new twist to what was commonly thought about COVID-19 explains a lot of what I was initially discovering about the disease, it puts a new level on my frustrations.

And as always, stay healthy, and stay safe.

New York Mets Legend Shares His COVID-19 Experience, Applauds Healthcare Workers

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What should be a shocker to no one, New York Mets legend, and baseball Hall of Fame inductee, Mike Piazza is Italian. But what may shock some people is that Mike Piazza was THIS CLOSE (holds up thumb and pointer finger really close together to emphasize the point) to being trapped in Italy, as the country is still on lockdown over the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Coach of the Italian Baseball Team Left Just in Time, Kept Out

In a sit down on the Jim Rome Show, Piazza reflects about how he left just in time prior to the Italian government shutting the country down. Piazza, as head coach for the Italian national baseball team since November, has been living in Parma Italy.

“I live in Miami when I’m here in the States, and my wife was like ‘Why don’t you go home for Super Bowl and hang out with your boys?’ and I was like ‘Really?’ And she was like ‘yeah,’ so then I got on a plane a few days before the Super Bowl and was hanging out with a couple of guys,” Piazza said.

Piazza Applauds Healthcare Workers

Later in the interview, Piazza was asked if the response to the coronavirus pandemic has been similar to the response we as a nation showed after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Piazza had this to say:

“Many, many healthcare workers, doctors, people who are caring for the sick, who are exposing themselves to possibly getting sick, that to me is true selflessness and bravery in a way, that they’re not allowing the fear to overcome what they need to do,” said Piazza.

“So even though maybe in a crisis situation like 9/11 it was more about first responders, police, firemen, and people who were racing to try to rescue people in a terrorist attack, here it’s the doctors, nurses, people who are giving up themselves and putting themselves in harm’s way to try to comfort the sick and the researchers in the companies that are looking for some sort, hopefully, of protection from it, and ultimately, hopefully, a cure.”

The Blessing and Curse For the Yankees and COVID-19

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New York Yankees, Aaron Judge

Fans and members of the New York Yankees can talk all about one thing these days. COVID-19, aka the coronavirus. There are some good things to happen to the Yankees, and some bad things to happen to the Yankees, as more information comes out about the disease itself, as well as the future of the 2020 regular season.

Let’s start with the Bad

Denny Larrondo was the first major league baseball player to test positive for the novel coronavirus. As I’ve pointed out, the virus spreads faster than any of the other past diseases we’ve had to deal with in the past 20 years, making it possible that one regular-season home game for the Yankees could result in 30,000 people getting infected. But, as our own Alexander Wilson reported, a second minor leaguer tested positive with the coronavirus.

Furthermore, the baseball season won’t begin until (hopefully) sometime in May. If the season were to begin in May, and the full 162 game season be played, realistically the offseason would consist of one month before Spring Training resumes in February 2021.

What makes things even worse for all of baseball amid the uncertainty of players receiving compensation during the coronavirus lockout, is that the current baseball CBA doesn’t expire until December 2021. We’re applauding basketball teams, and players like Zion Williamson, who are paying the hourly employees at these stadiums their wages during this social distancing period. But things are much more uncertain in baseball, with the Mets setting the bar early. If baseball screws the pooch on the Astros cheating scandal, AND properly compensating their players during this confusing time for everyone, we may see another strike in 2022.

But There is Still Some Good… Even if Minimal

The impact of Luis Severino’s absence in our starting rotation will be greatly reduced. I stand firm that MLB has no other choice but to shorten the season as they did in 1995. With a shortened season, that’s less time to scramble and find an adequate replacement for Severino, who won’t be back in action until sometime in 2021.

Which will also mean more reinforcements arrive sooner, rather than later. Giancarlo Stanton wasn’t expected to make Opening Day due to his calf strain. Now, he’ll be fully recovered and ready to hit the ground running. James Paxton may have an opportunity to play a couple of the make up Spring Training games baseball is expected to put on, as a tune-up for all of the players to be ready for the 2020 season once we have a better handle on the current coronavirus situation. Gary Sanchez suffered ANOTHER injury setback, on top of a coronavirus scare of his own. This extra time away will give him the opportunity to recuperate, recover, and give us the closest thing to a full season of Gary Sanchez.

Then there’s Aaron Judge. His worst-case scenario was always going to be his rib being surgically removed. Now, he’s got an extra month to do everything under his power to rest and repair that fractured rib (Mayor DeBlasio is talking following San Fransisco’s approach to containing the spread of coronavirus. If that means he doesn’t go to the gym to keep aggravating that rib, GOOD!).

And the best possible news is that while it’s unfortunate that Yankee minor leaguers are testing positive for the coronavirus, the 40 man roster seems spared of contracting the disease. I wish the speediest and most complete recovery to the minor league Yankees who have contracted the disease, but with all the injury problems the 40 man has sustained on the Yankees since 2019, the 40 man roster needed this win.

All of us at EmpireSportsMedia.com will continue to give you updates as coronavirus effects our daily lives, and our sports teams. Stay safe, and stay healthy everyone.

The State of Baseball During the COVID-19 Pandemic

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New York Yankees

The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has created a scenario never before seen in the sports world. Sports have always been the one constant, no matter what the tragedy or circumstances have been across the globe. 

Unfortunately, for the first time, all four major sports have been suspended, and it leaves baseball in an eerie place, as opening day was only two weeks away. 

Two weeks is a very optimistic point for Major League Baseball to restart activities, but a starting point of May is more realistic for America’s Pastime to return. MLB also has to work within the constraints of what the government will allow. 

Washington, New York, and California have banned gatherings of over 250 people from taking place. Along with these restrictions, there is no set date on when they will end, which makes starting the season an even tougher decision. 

Will We See Baseball Soon?

Some of these restrictions could extend through April, which forces games to be delayed more or played in front of limited fans. Illinois has even been instructed to halt sporting events or play them without fans until May. 

For the players, they are either going home, head to their team’s cities, or stay in camp. Many organizations closed their Spring Training facilities in Arizona and Florida on Friday but will reopen them on Monday for any remaining players. 

There are plenty of variables that go into MLB’s decision to open their doors again. Does the season start with empty stadiums? Are they playing in infected cities? Does the season just begin in the Spring Training cities?

It is too soon to develop a concrete answer to exactly when baseball will resume. All baseball, along with every sport, can do is continue to wait things out and see what happens. Life, not just sports, is in unchartered territory, and we just had a Yankee’s minor leaguer become the first baseball player to test positive. He remains unidentified. 

Delay’s of the Past

The season’s delay will be the first shortened season for MLB since 1995 when 144 games were on the schedule. 144 is a very optimistic number, and MLB is looking at a number closer to the 107 played during the 1981 strike-shortened season. 

The players themselves still have a lot of questions. When to resume training? When to report back to camp? Most importantly, are they getting paid? These are still relatively unanswered since all of this is brand new to everyone involved. Even scouts and other personnel stopped traveling to limit the spread of COVID-19. 

The effect of the virus is felt beyond the Major League level. Minor League Baseball will also delay the start of their season. They carry four to five times more teams than MLB, which makes containing COVID-19 even tougher and essential. 

College Baseball’s Loss

The most painful of all is the cancellation of the entire college baseball season. So many young, talented, and hard-working players are losing their seasons due to the brutal virus. Even more so, the seniors, who will now get an unprecedented extra year of eligibility but lose out on what was supposed to be their senior season. More than likely, these seniors are not going to return unless everything plays out perfectly for them.

The one outlier is the National Club Baseball Association, which is still allowing games to continue. Their crowd sizes and travel is much smaller compared to NCAA sports, but at least offers hope that baseball can return soon. Despite the chance to play, so many universities have either canceled travel, club sports, or both altogether. 

Unfortunately, for the first time in baseball’s history, we will see empty baseball fields across the nation.

Coronavirus: New York Baseball Fans Should Prepare for a Longer Layoff

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New York Yankees

Jonesing for some baseball are you? We all are, but the reality is we’re not going to see the old pastime for quite some time. MLB has already delayed the season by two weeks, but that is seen as unrealistic.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan believes the season won’t begin until May, and that’s if everything breaks right.

The first thing that will have to happen is the normalization of American society. That may not happen for several months. New York is basically in lockdown. All major venues are shuttered for at least a month including Madison Square Garden, Barclays Center and Broadway. And those closures could last longer if the situation with Coronavirus worsens.

Should things improve and the government lifts the ban on gatherings of 250 people or more, that’s when the discussion will begin about resuming play. There’s also the prospect of playing games in front of no audience but that has met with a resistance from the teams and the players. If the venues aren’t safe for fans, they want no part of them, either.

When the green light is given, however, players will need time to ramp up for games, a second spring training of sorts. That could be as little as two weeks, though.

So, May could be a realistic target for MLB but as we stated, the direction the virus takes will be the driver of that. More incentive for everyone to band together to help stop the spread of the outbreak.

New York Mets: Where Do We Go From Here?

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yankees, New York Mets, Luis Rojas

The worldwide Coronavirus pandemic has sent the world into a frenzy, never seen before. Public events are either being postponed or shut down altogether, and it seems very likely that the virus will continue to spread in the upcoming days as more cases surface.

The extreme precautions put in place are attempting to limit the spread of the virus throughout the country. The delay to the start of the season all but guarantees the MLB will be playing a shortened schedule for the first time since the 1995 strike-shortened season.

How Does This Affect the Mets?

Just like the other 29 teams in baseball, the New York Mets have to figure out a way to deal with the circumstances. The main goal is to keep their players, staff, and their families healthy through the extreme health crisis throughout the country. Once each member of the organization has been tested, it will allow the Mets to decided the correct course of action while MLB is on its hiatus.

With Donovan Mitchell Sr. working for the Mets, they are very thankful to have him test negative. Everyone within the organization should be checked and separate from society as we try to figure out the right course of action. As of now, no one in baseball has the virus, but things could quickly change.

With the situation unprecedented, all the Mets can do is hope it does not become a team-wide issue. The one bright side is that players recovering from injury have more time to get right. Dellin Betances and Yoenis Cespedes are just a couple of the stars the Mets are rehabbing. As long as the virus does not affect them, the extra time off should be in their benefit.

The earliest timeline for MLB to return is in May, which takes off close to 30 games on the schedule. Players have also been instructed to either head back home, to their team’s cities or remain in camp. The pandemic is undoubtedly unprecedented, and things are likely to get worse before they get better.

Pete Alonso Sends Out Thoughtful Tweet Regarding Coronavirus

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New York Mets slugger Pete Alonso is more than just the reigning National League Rookie of the Year and MLB home run champion. He’s a classy, thoughtful young man who is as compassionate towards society as he is ferocious towards opposing pitchers.

On Thursday, after Major League Baseball announced that they were suspending all play in fear of the spreading COVID-19 “Coronavirus”, Alonso tweeted out the below message to the fans.

The 25-year-old Alonso took it upon himself to reach out and comfort and assure fans that we are all in this together. The Mets will continue to work out in Port St. Lucie until further notice.

The first two weeks of the season are history, unlikely to be made up when the season does finally begin. That’s 12 games, leaving just 150 games max to be played. It’s unlikely that the delay will be only two weeks. New York City is preparing for a prolonged shutdown of major venues across the region.

There is a possibility that MLB works out playing the beginning of the season in the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues but that would still involve some travel and whether or not fans would be allowed to view the games is not known.