On July 18, the BlueJays were told the federal government would not be granting an exemption allowing them to play regular-season games in Toronto. ShiDavidi details the ensuing scramble that brought them to Sahlen Field in Buffalo ⤵️
Another factor was the schedule and finding teams that lined up well in terms of dates and region. There were two that stuck out – the Pittsburgh Pirates and PNC Park, and the Baltimore Orioles and Camden Yards – but the Blue Jays couldn’t really plan for either until the Toronto option played out. Starkman said, “It wasn’t fair to start asking other teams to make a massive consideration and decision until we knew we really needed to do that.
At PNC Park, the Blue Jays would have used the big restaurant in left field as their clubhouse, along with some adjoining concourse space. They considered using a parking lot near a loading dock, as well, but the path to the field wasn’t as convenient as to one that was charted from the restaurant through the bullpen. At Camden, they looked at the famed warehouse in the backdrop beyond right field but landed on the 100-level concourse instead.
By Tuesday, July 21, as the Blue Jays played their first of two games against the Red Sox, the planning with the Pirates had advanced far enough that a proposal could be submitted to local and state officials for approval. Word leaked that night and it seemed like a done deal, but the next day, there was chatter that Pennsylvania was wary of bringing in another team, one that would be playing in hotspots of Florida and Georgia.
But working against the Blue Jays was a recent increase in COVID-19 cases in Maryland and Gov. Larry Hogan’s vigilant approach to the virus. In an interview withon Thursday, July 23, he sounded very lukewarm to the idea, confirming that he’d had some discussions with the Orioles, but adding, “we’re watching our numbers very carefully every day. We’re concerned about the spikes in other states.”
All that information came in handy on the morning of opening day, Friday, July 24. Shapiro connected with Angelos and “it was clear from John to me that we just couldn’t get the commitment from the governor there, understandably, in light of what transpired.”
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