2020 Toronto Blue Jays season
The 2020 Toronto Blue Jays season was the 44th season of the Toronto Blue Jays franchise. On March 12, 2020, MLB announced that because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic (including in Toronto), the start of the regular season would be delayed by at least two weeks in addition to the remainder of spring training being cancelled. Four days later, it was announced that the start of the season would be pushed back indefinitely due to the recommendation made by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to restrict events of more than 50 people  for eight weeks. On June 23, commissioner Rob Manfred unilaterally implemented a 60-game season. Players were to report to training camps on July 1 in order to resume spring training and prepare for a July 23 or 24 Opening Day. The team was forced to play their home games in the home of their AAA affiliate in Buffalo, New York. Due to the pandemic and the shortened season, Major League Baseball instituted certain rule changes which included the use of a universal designated hitter, a runner on second base to start extra innings, and a revised schedule. On July  30, the league and the union agreed that all remaining doubleheaders on the season would be seven innings. On September 24, the Blue Jays clinched a playoff berth for the first time since 2016, and on the next day they clinched their first winning season since 2016 as well. As the eighth seed in the expanded playoff format, they faced the top-seeded Tampa Bay Rays in one of four 2020 American League Wild Card Series where they were swept 2–0 in the best-of-three series. Offseason. Rule changes. For the 2020 season, MLB instituted several new rule changes  including the following: Further rule changes came into effect in response to the COVID-19 pandemic including the use of the DH in the National League, a shortened schedule, and starting extra innings with a runner at second base. Spring training. The Blue Jays announced they would return to Montreal to finish their spring training for the seventh consecutive year. The opponents would have been the New York Yankees. However, spring training games, including the aforementioned series in Montreal, were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On June 23, MLB announced the resumption of spring training on July 1. Home games . On July 18, the Canadian government denied approval for the Blue Jays to play their home games at Rogers Centre in Toronto, due to concerns surrounding repeated cross-border travel between the United States and Canada by teams involved in its games. With the Blue Jays denied permission to play in Toronto, this was the first season since 1968 (the year before the Montreal Expos were founded) to feature no regular season games played in Canada. After authorities in Pennsylvania rejected the Blue Jays' request to share PNC Park with the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Blue Jays struck an agreement to  use Sahlen Field, home of their AAA affiliate Buffalo Bisons, for their home games. The first game in Buffalo took place on August 11; the Jays' "home" games prior to that date were scheduled to be played in their opponents' stadiums (though some of these were later postponed). Under MLB's health and safety protocols, all Blue Jays home games were held behind closed doors. The Jays were the first major league baseball team to play its home games in Buffalo, New York since the Buffalo Blues of the Federal League ceased operations in 1915. 2020 Major League Baseball draft . The 2020 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft occurred on Monday, June 10 through June 11, 2020. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the draft was shortened to only five rounds. Farm system. Due to the COVID–19 pandemic, Major League Baseball announced the cancellation of the entire Minor League Baseball season on June 30. The Blue Jays taxi squad was based at Frontier Field in Rochester, New York.