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The second iteration of Spring Training is going to be weird. But then again, everything about the 2020 MLB season is weird.
Teams will be holding their Summer Training at their home ballparks, but they need an alternate training site for the players who aren’t on the active roster but are in the 60-player pool.
The league needed those player pools on Sunday, even though the San Francisco Giants waited until Monday to release their results. And the alternate training site choice needed to be included in the information the Giants sent to the league.
And that’s where things get confusing, because the Giants like to dabble in the world of confusion.
San Francisco reportedly chose the facilities of the Sacramento River Cats — the team’s AAA affiliate — as their alternate training site. Kind of. They also listed the facilities of the San Jose Giants — the team’s A+ affiliate — as what appears to be the alternate’s alternate.
In documents submitted to the union, the Giants' alternate training site (where the alternate player pool will work out during the season) is listed as Sacramento, with San Jose also a possibility. So apparently they are still ironing this out.
— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) June 24, 2020
It’s a little unclear whether the Giants are still deliberating on their alternate training site, or if they’ve chosen Sacramento and just want to keep the door open for San Jose should the coronavirus situation make it a more preferable location. As with many things involving the Giants, I feel confident that there’s a good reason for this action, even though I have no idea what that reason is.
Sacramento and San Jose seemed to be the only two realistic options for the Giants. They are the team’s only Northern California affiliates, and it is highly unlikely that the Giants would want to try and use a college campus as their alternate site. San Jose is obviously closer to San Francisco, so it’s more preferable in the proximity department, but it’s also a more densely populated area than Sacramento, so the River Cats facilities are probably a little safer and more responsible during the current pandemic.
Long story short, Sacramento is where Joey Bart and Marco Luciano will be getting in their reps during the season, unless it’s San Jose. Who can ever really know these things.