Report: Orioles Approve Use of Camden Yards for Blue Jays' 2020 Home Games

The Baltimore Orioles have reportedly given the Toronto Blue Jays their approval to use Oriole Park at Camden Yards as their home ballpark during the 2020 season.

According to MLB Network's Jon Heyman, the Blue Jays still need the state of Maryland to approve the motion in order to make it official.

The Jays have been in search of a home park for this season for the past several days on the heels of the Canadian federal government refusing to grant them permission to use Rogers Centre because of the coronavirus-related risks that would come along with visiting teams entering the country from the United States.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said the following regarding the possibility of allowing the Blue Jays to play in Baltimore, per Rob Gillies of The Associated Press: "We've had some discussions with the Orioles. I don't know the final details of that. Obviously we're watching our numbers very carefully every day. We're concerned about the spikes in other states."

It appeared Wednesday—for a few hours at least—that the Blue Jays would be able to call the Pittsburgh Pirates' PNC Park home for the 2020 campaign. It seemed like an ideal fit because of the location in proximity to most AL and NL East teams, as well as the fact that the Jays' and Pirates' schedules matched up well.

However, the plan fell apart when the Pennsylvania state government denied the proposal because of the COVID-19-related risks that would have come along with another team playing regularly in the state in addition to the Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies.

Other options that have been considered include playing games at the Jays' spring training facility in Dunedin, Florida, or at Sahlen Field—home to their Triple-A affiliate, the Buffalo Bison.

Both of those options come with downsides. Dunedin has quality facilities, but with COVID-19 hitting Florida hard, it may be too risky to base another MLB team in the state.

Buffalo is close to Toronto and played host to many of the Blue Jays' players when they passed through Triple-A, but the lighting and replay functionality are considered subpar compared to Major League ballparks, and Blue Jays players have expressed a desire to play in a Major League venue.

Baltimore may represent Toronto's best and last chance to find a permanent Major League home for the 2020 season, especially since the regular season opens with two games Thursday night.

The Blue Jays start with a three-game set on the road against the Tampa Bay Rays and a two-game road series against the Washington Nationals. Their first home game is scheduled for Wednesday against the Nats.

If Maryland does not approve the proposal, then the Blue Jays may have to play at opposing teams' home parks for every game this season. In designated Blue Jays home games, they would bat second.

A lack of fans makes home-field advantage less important than usual, but the comfort level teams have in their own parks could give them an edge over the Jays if Toronto is forced to play on the road for the duration of the 2020 season.