MLB Rules, Format Changes for 60-Game 2020 Season Due to COVID-19

Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association have finalized terms for a shortened 60-game regular season beginning either July 23 or 24 after the coronavirus pandemic delayed Opening Day for nearly four months.

ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Tuesday the changes will include a 30-player roster to open the season—which will eventually drop to 26 for the remainder of the campaign—a taxi squad of 60 players available to play and a special COVID-19 injured list with no minimum or maximum time requirement.

Here's a look at some other notable details for the reworked 2020 season, according to Passan:

• Designated hitter in the National League
• 10 games vs. each divisional opponent; four games vs. regional interleague opponents
• Runner on second base to start extra innings
• Aug. 31 trade deadline
• Players tested for COVID-19 every other day
• Full prorated pay for players
• Spring training 2.0 report date of July 1

Jayson Stark of The Athletic elaborated on the schedule:

"Each club will play a total of 20 games against the corresponding interleague division (i.e., East versus East, Central versus Central, West versus West). Six of those games would be against a team’s interleague 'rival' (Yankees-Mets, Cubs-White Sox, etc.). The breakdown of the other 14 games has yet to be finalized, but is expected to involve each team playing two interleague opponents three times apiece and the other two clubs four times apiece."

If a player tests positive for the coronavirus, he faces strict guidelines before getting clearance to rejoin his club, including two negative tests 24 hours apart, no fever for a span of 72 hours and the completion of an antibody test, per Ken Rosenthal and Evan Drellich of The Athletic.

Although there was talk about scheduling doubleheaders to increase the number of possible games, the decision was made to produce a standard 60-game schedule because MLB will need the doubleheader flexibility to reschedule games that are rained out, according to Stark.

A date hasn't yet been announced for the release of the schedule.

The playoff format will remain the same as five teams (three division winners and two wild cards) qualify from each league.

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Bleacher Report's David Gardner interviews athletes and other sports figures for the podcast How to Survive Without Sports.