Los Angeles Angels schedule in limbo as cities react to coronavirus

Opening Day is only two weeks away and cities all over the Major Leagues are announcing contingency plans in response to the coronavirus.

*This article was published before the NBA announced they will suspend their season until further notice after learning Utah Jazz player Rudy Gobert has tested positive for coronavirus. Obviously, as the virus continues to spread and professional sports leagues are forced to react, circumstances related to the Angels and Major League Baseball could quickly change. In the meantime, our thoughts are with those impacted by this virus. For more information about COVID-19, visit the CDC’s website or the website for your state’s Department of Health.

It is unclear how the coronavirus will impact the start of the regular season, but the Los Angeles Angels could see their schedule adjusted depending on how States and cities react to the continued spread of the virus.

The mayor of Houston, where the Los Angeles Angels are scheduled to open their 2020 season, announced on Wednesday that city-sponsored events in March will be canceled or postponed. The Angels are scheduled to play a four-game set in Houston from March 26-29. Shortly after the news broke, the Astros released a statement clarifying the announcement, “We are in regular communication with the city, county, local health authorities and MLB. We have not adjusted our game schedule at this point — including our exhibition games.”

With fourteen reported coronavirus cases in the Houston area, a local disaster expert has called for the city to declare a health emergency.

If games are impacted in Houston, it is unclear whether they would be relocated to an alternate site, as other teams have announced, played in front of an empty stadium, or rescheduled. The Wall Street Journal reports MLB prefers alternate sites to empty stadiums.

Several professional sports franchises are reacting to State and city decrees to ban public gatherings in response to the virus that has officially become a global pandemic.

The San Francisco Giants are staying in Arizona instead of playing exhibitions in Sacramento, San Francisco, and Oakland. The Seattle Mariners, who the Angels are scheduled to play in Seattle beginning on April 28, are locating an alternate site to begin their season. Meanwhile, it appears the Golden State Warriors will become the first franchise of the so-called Big Four sports in America (NBA, NHL, NFL, MLB) to play in an empty arena after the mayor issued a ban on large gatherings.

The Angels are scheduled to return to California on March 22 to begin an exhibition freeway series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Fans should follow the local news leading up to that series to learn of any potential changes.