Doolittle: I go back to one of the most epic deals in winter meetings history, when the Blue Jays sent McGriff and Fernandez to San Diego for Carter and Alomar. Toronto won back-to-back World Series in 1992 and 1993, with Alomar serving as a catalyst and Carter providing a historic World Series-ending homer in 1993.Texas Rangers Face Masks
With the Major League Baseball season suspended due to Covid-19, resources that would normally be reserved for making jerseys will instead go toward masks and gowns for healthcare workers.
Fanatics, the company that manufactures MLB jerseys for Nike, has temporarily converted its 360,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Easton, Pennsylvania, to create up to 1 million masks and gowns, per MLB.
According to Fanatics executive director Michael Rubin, the company has halted production of jerseys entirely, instead re-focusing a staff of 100 social-distanced employees on making masks and gowns from jersey materials. They will be donated to hospitals and emergency management personnel in Pennsylvania with plans to expand to the New York City region, which has become the epicenter of the outbreak.
MLB jerseys are made with polyester, which could retain germs for a longer period of time compared to cotton. But the jersey-made equipment could still help prevent the spread of Covid-19 by way of coughing, spitting or sneezing. Some form of prevention is better than none as healthcare workers are already struggling with a lack of resources amid the outbreak and are being told to reuse masks.
"In particular, Carson Wentz is an incredible teammate. So I have no doubt in my mind that he's going to do everything he can to help Jalen Hurts succeed, and I think anybody who isn't doing that for all of their teammates should be on the first ticket out of here because that's not the culture or the team that I want to be on."
Gonzalez: What I'll miss the least is the overall concept; it got to a point when executives hardly ever appeared in the lobby, which at times made it seem rather pointless to report on site. And so what you had was a ton of loitering media members, a few of them scrounging for any morsel of information -- much of it, because of the circumstances, either inconsequential, misleading or incomplete -- and a few others merely pretending to work. What I'll miss most is the nights -- gathering with reporter friends over dinner, everyone anxious over the threat of major news interrupting everything, then congregating at the hotel bar and not knowing which executive or coach or agent or even player might be there. That's when the real reporting happened.Kansas City Royals Face Masks
The NFL initial changed the rules after Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey took a COVID-19 test, played against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday and then on Monday got a positive test result back. There were six Ravens players that were considered high-risk due to their close contact with Humphrey and now they're forced to quarantine for five days. Couple that news with the latest from the 49ers, and its evident why the NFL is enforcing these new face mask rules.Atlanta Braves Face Masks
Bradford Doolittle: The San Francisco Giants' signing of Barry Bonds during the 1992 winter meetings was seismic. It's not every day a franchise acquires a best-in-the-game player in the prime of his career. Love Bonds or hate Bonds, it was a watershed move in baseball annals.
There are many accounts of the fight on July 3, 1965, but most agree it started when Thomas made a racist comment to Allen during batting practice. Thomas claimed a few days later in an interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer that he told Allen he was acting like “Muhammad Clay — always running off at the mouth,” though there are also claims he called Allen a “n—–” and a “Black bastard.” Allen confronted him and a scuffle broke out, ending when Thomas slammed his bat into the second-year player’s shoulder. Both played that day, with Allen going 3-for-4, and Thomas hitting a pinch-hit home run.Pittsburgh Pirates Face Masks
