TAMPA — Masahiro Tanaka threw a bullpen session Sunday — although even he admitted, he has no idea what he’s preparing for.
“Obviously, this is not normal,’’ the right-hander said through an interpreter outside George M. Steinbrenner Field following a brief, informal workout as the Yankees and the rest of the sports world wrestles with how to function during the coronavirus pandemic.
“This is the reality right now,’’ Tanaka said. “As for me, I just keep doing what I need to do. That’s the bottom line.’’
But with spring training games canceled and the start of the regular season delayed at least two weeks — and almost certainly considerably longer than that — no one knows exactly what they are getting ready for.
Asked how he could prepare for an undetermined start date, Tanaka said he was at a loss.
“I don’t know and I don’t think anybody does,’’ Tanaka said. “Obviously, we’re experiencing something like this for the first time.”
Tanaka said he planned on staying sharp, but he wouldn’t build up as he would if the season were going to start in a matter of weeks.
“I’ll just back down a little bit,’’ Tanaka said. “That might change as well.”
“Change” is the operative word around the league, as MLB and the Players Association meet to determine the best course of action during the coronavirus crisis, and Sunday released guidelines recommending players not congregate in large numbers.
The situation impacted the Yankees even more on Sunday, when they announced that one of their minor leaguers became the first person affiliated with a major league team to test positive for coronavirus.
General manager Brian Cashman said the Florida Department of Health in Hillsborough County was instructing the team on how to handle the situation, adding the player had no contact with any major leaguers.
Tanaka, like much of the rest of the team, said he expected to remain in Tampa to work at the team’s facility until further notice. The Yankees had already planned for Monday to be an off day and they could go back to work at Steinbrenner Field on Tuesday.
Even that wasn’t definite.
“I wouldn’t be able to say 100 percent for sure, just because everything’s so fluid,’’ Tanaka said about how long he planned on remaining in Tampa. “Everything’s changing day by day.’’
And that goes for everything — not just baseball.
Asked if he was concerned a significant portion of the season might be canceled, Tanaka said it was a “possibility,’’ but he also noted that there was not much point in speculating.
“It’s all guessing,’’ Tanaka said. “We don’t know what’s gonna happen. I feel the most important thing right now is to try to strive to see the end of this. I’m not talking about baseball, but the whole thing.’’
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How Masahiro Tanaka plans to handle Yankees' coronavirus uncertainty - New York Post
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