St. Paul Saints ‘sitting tight while pushing forward’ toward season

Derek Sharrer is optimistic that his team will play baseball this year.

It’s just that the St. Paul Saints executive vice president and general manager, like the rest of sports world, isn’t sure when, so for the time being, Sharrer said the team is “sitting tight while pushing forward.”

What that means right now is preparing for an opening night that is scheduled for May 19 with the understanding that that’s likely going to be moved back. Sharrer said the American Association, the independent league that features the Saints and 11 others teams, likely will have an announcement next week on its 2020 schedule.

So far, the only change the Saints have made to their schedule is to cut into their preseason training time, shortening it from 12 days to five with players scheduled to report on May 12.

“The reality is that that very well could change based on governmental restrictions,” Sharrer said. “(We’re) just sort of monitoring and waiting while still doing everything we can to prepare.”

Another wrinkle is that the team currently only has 12 players under contract. Typically, Sharrer said, Saints manager George Tsamis likes to wait until major league teams have cut down their spring training camps and then sign players who have been released. But many of those players are still in major-league camp with MLB and the MLB Players Association agreeing to a roster freeze during this time, making it more difficult for the Saints and other independent teams to build their rosters.

“There will definitely be a shorter window once we know when our season will begin and once Major League Baseball has determined what they’re going to do,” Sharrer said. “That’s really going to determine what that window of time is to sign minor leaguers who have been released from major-league rosters. … I think we’re still going to take the same approach, but it will be a little bit more challenging than in previous years.”

MLB’s plans are in limbo, too. A recent proposal floated by MLB that was leaked Monday has players getting back to work next month and play beginning back up in Arizona. Under MLB’s plan, the league would restart without fans.

That would be much more of a struggle for an independent league that doesn’t have the same money coming in from television deals and instead is much more reliant on fan revenue. Still, Sharrer said it was important to keep all ideas on the table and consider every option.

“Our business is built so much on fans enjoying the experience and less so about media rights and television revenue. It likely wouldn’t make sense for us to play games with no fans,” Sharrer said. “…From a business perspective, really, we’re going to be looking much harder at contingency plans that involve us being able to play in front of fans.”

Those contingency plans focus more on later start and end dates rather than the more flexible ideas like having all teams play in one location that MLB has floated around.

In the meantime, the Saints are trying their best to entertain fans on social media, replaying classic games, giving fans an inside look at how their ushertainers are coping during their quarantines and bringing back content from previous years.

“We’re doing our best again to prepare for the season but also try to keep people engaged and provide the same distraction right now that we do in the summer,” Sharrer said. “If we’re good at anything, it’s providing a distraction.”

Source:  Twincities.com