Four Sask. players named to Canada world junior hockey championship team
16h ago
Berkly Catton, Brayden Yager, Caden Price and Tanner Howe were all named.
As sports leagues across North America look for ways to return to action, the Western Canadian Baseball League has decided to cancel the 2020 season due to COVID-19.
The league announced in a media release that its board of governors voted unanimously to cancel the season. In past years, the regular season has run from May to August.
“This difficult decision was based on our No. 1 concern, the health and safety needs of all involved,” the league said in its release.
Because of health guidelines and medical recommendations from various levels of government, the league said it “would be impossible to guarantee the safety of players, coaches, umpires, host families, staff, volunteers and fans during the COVID-19 pandemic to the extent required by authorities.”
The WCBL’s roster of teams includes the Regina Red Sox, Moose Jaw Miller Express, Swift Current 57s and Weyburn Beavers. The Melville Millionaires and Yorkton Cardinals previously were granted a one-year leave of absence for 2020.
Teams in the WCBL primarily sign players from the United States who are looking to play baseball during the off-seasons of their college teams.
Because the Canada-U.S. border is closed until at least June 22 and people crossing the border are required to self-isolate for 14 days, the league determined it couldn’t fit in a full season if it wanted to use players from the States.
The league said it examined a number of options before deciding to cancel the season. Those included pushing back the start of the regular season to July 4 and playing with only Canadian players to overcome border issues.
But restrictions on the size of gatherings and social distancing requirements would have created challenges for players in clubhouses and on buses. As well, fans couldn’t fill the stands at ballparks around the league.
The league’s focus now shifts to a return in 2021.
“With no baseball this summer, teams will need community support now more than ever as they shift to survive this crisis,” the league said.