Find out which players have opted out of the 2020 MLB season due to COVID-19 concerns.
The 2020 MLB season will take place with a shortened 60-game regular-season schedule amid the coronavirus pandemic, but not every player is committing to playing.
Players are set to report to summer training camp Wednesday, and teams can host their first workouts Friday. Opening Day games are set for July 23 and 24. Baseball's return comes after a long and dramatic negotiating period between MLB and the MLBPA over the number of games, players' prorated salaries and health and safety protocols.
With the season finally on the horizon, players have the ability to opt-out due to their concerns over COVID-19. Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman and right-hander Joe Ross, as well as Diamondbacks right-hander Mike Leake, are the first known players to announce their decisions to sit out.
Here's all the players opting out of the 2020 MLB season:
- Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals: The reigning 2019 World Series champion has decided to opt out because he has three young children, including a newborn, and his mother has multiple sclerosis, putting her at a higher risk for contracting the virus. The 35-year-old confirmed he is not retiring this year.
- Mike Leake, Diamondbacks: Leake's agent, Danny Horwits, confirmed the 32-year-old's decision. The pending free agent was the first known MLB player to forgo playing this season. He was in the final season of his five-year, $80 million deal and will pass up his $5.5 million prorated salary.
- Joe Ross, Nationals: The team confirmed Ross will join Zimmerman in sitting out this season. Ross, 27, was expected to compete for a spot in Washington's starting rotation. He recorded a 5.48 ERA and 11.67 WHIP in 64 innings last season.