MLB Rumors: Latest on 2020 World Series, Doubleheaders and More Schedule Options

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have reportedly discussed the possibility of holding playoff games at neutral locations and an increase in doubleheaders this season.

According to ESPN's Jeff Passan and Kiley McDaniel, the delayed start of the 2020 campaign due to the coronavirus pandemic could result in playoff games, including the World Series, occurring in November rather than October. If that is the case, MLB is considering holding those games in neutral warm-weather cities or inside domed stadiums if permitted.

Multiple players said that they would play as many as two doubleheaders per week in order to get as close to a 162-game season as possible.

Opening Day was supposed to be Thursday. After initially pushing the start of the season back two weeks, MLB later announced it would begin no later than May 10, though the organization and the players are anticipating a longer delay. 

"MLB and the MLBPA have worked toward a potential agreement over the past 10 days, acknowledging the inevitability of a shortened season that both parties hope would begin by early June and would guarantee players a prorated salary that would depend on the number of games played," Passan and McDaniel wrote.

The two sides have also talked about starting the season in July around the time the MLB All-Star Game was scheduled to take place in Los Angeles.

Additionally, they have discussed having games with no fans in attendance despite the negative financial ramifications, as well as holding regular-season games at neutral sites if the teams play in cities with significant coronavirus outbreaks.

MLB must also consider that players need to prepare for the start of the season after spring training was interrupted. One possibility is holding an abbreviated second spring training and permitting teams to carry extra pitchers on the their roster to start the campaign.

MLB and the MLBPA intend to reach an agreement by Wednesday, but some players are concerned with how a shortened or canceled season would impact service time, which has "complicated negotiations," per Passan and McDaniel.

If the COVID-19 pandemic results in the cancellation of the 2020 season, it will mark the first time since the strike-shortened season of 1994 that no World Series champion is crowned.