Dodgers front office provides update, optimistic 2020 season will return

Los Angeles Dodgers team president Stan Kasten believes there is a path to play baseball again in 2020. He was joined by general manager Andrew Friedman in a YouTube session for fans.

With the novel coronavirus keeping everyone behind closed doors, the Dodgers used their YouTube channel to reach out to fans on Monday evening. President Stan Kasten and general manager Andrew Friedman joined pitching legend Orel Hershiser and broadcaster Joe Davis to discuss the state of the Dodgers.

While details were scarce, we did learn a few things from the front office during the 15-minute video session.

Almost two weeks since Major League Baseball postponed Spring Training, Friedman explained how the organization is working to keep everyone “connected” from a distance. He said they aren’t thinking about throwing programs right now; instead, they’re focused on remote workout programs for players at their homes.

Friedman acknowledged the challenge of ramping things back up whenever baseball returns to normal activities will be stretching out the starting pitchers. He isn’t as worried about the rest of the positional players, who he thinks could be ready to play fairly quickly.

Kasten spoke to the commissioner an hour before the broadcast, coming away from the meeting feeling like there is “light at the end of the tunnel” in terms of combatting the virus that has crippled communities across the globe. The team president spoke optimistically about playing a “significant” season. He believes there is a path to play again in 2020.

The renovation work at Dodgers stadium has slowed down due to safety precautions related to the coronavirus, but Kasten said he expected everything to be finished in time for the season. He noted there are some exciting things they haven’t even announced yet that will be featured in the new center field area.

The Dodgers plan to do more video sessions in the future to keep fans informed during the break. At the end of the broadcast, the team also dropped a teaser about Orel Hershiser starting a podcast with Joe Davis.