Tampa Bay Rays have first workout day before new 2020 plan proposal

The Tampa Bay Rays held their first workout since the suspension of the season in March.

The Tampa Bay Rays opened the doors to Tropicana Field on Monday for a voluntary workout. 14 players attended the workouts, including Austin Meadows, Nick Anderson, Willy Adames, Jose Martinez, Michael Perez, Diego Castillo, Jose Alvarado, Ryan Yarbrough, Yonny Chirinos, Brendan McKay, and Manuel Margot.

All team personnel wore masks and had their temperatures taken after answering a series of medical questions before being allowed to enter.

While the batting cages and the weight rooms were closed, players were able to run, stretch, play catch, and workout with free weights and a plyometric station on the field.

Manager Kevin Cash discussed how good it was to see everyone and to finally get some work in, and noted that they were unable to even shake hands.

As limited and restrained as this situation is, it is certainly a step in the right direction.

The workout comes the day before the owners are set to propose round two of their plan to get the 2020 season going. They have reportedly made some adjustments to pay players on a sliding scale, rather than a revenue split. Which ultimately would allow players to recoup some of the lost wages once the massive playoff revenue kicks in.

Cash told reporters that they are ramping up as if the dates in the proposal are real. This means a second spring training would pick up in mid-June and the season would start the first week of July.

“If those dates are actuality,” Cash told reporters, “we probably need to get going a little bit and starting some more aggressive type of routine. I think this was a really good start for a first day and a first week.”

We’ll save the nuts and bolts of the new proposal for another time. Right now, it’s good to see the Rays taking the first week of July as a serious date. We’ll keep you posted as more information comes out on the new proposal.