Sports organizations have had to get creative as they dealt with the global situation. Bringing leagues like the NBA and NHL back weren’t easy, but the bubble solution appears to be the best one. With the MLB season underway, it seems that officials are considering an NBA or NHL-style playoff and World Series bubble.
Contingency Plans
It makes sense that the people who call the shots for MLB are thinking about how to complete the season should another outbreak occur. Although most people would hope there is no need for it, there seem to be some considerations for MLB to implement a bubble-style postseason. This would require a ton of planning, and we’re sure the franchises are in the loop about the possibilities.
Complications
However, while the plan for a bubble works for the NHL and NBA, it’s not clear if this solution is ideal for MLB. For one thing, an NBA court or NHL rink is much smaller than a baseball field, plus there is the size of the teams to consider. NBA and NHL rosters are much smaller than the 30-man squads assembled in MLB.
Instead of hosting the postseason games in just one city, a multi-city bubble might have to be considered. Especially as MLB announced that the playoffs for 2020 would be expanded to 16 teams instead of 10. Another thing to consider is the weather, and playing in a location that is likely to be rained off isn’t ideal.
The Current Plan
For now, MLB is still planning on having the higher seed host their playoff series games. However, it doesn’t hurt to have a backup plan, especially if some of those hosting cities are forced to go into lockdown once again.
Fans of baseball appear to be guaranteed playoffs and a World Series, which is a victory in itself considering how uncertain things were a few months ago.
Kyle Gibson Is Donating to Local Charities with Each Strikeout
Kyle Gibson joined the Phillies last month after living in one of the wealthiest suburbs in Minnesota during the seven seasons he spent playing for the Twins as their pitcher. He quickly realized that food insecurity can be everywhere after volunteering for a food bank that was sending supplies to a couple of schools in his town. Now he’s doing something different and combining his love for strikeouts.
Kyle Gibson Helps Those in Need
There are more than 11 million children in the United States that deal with food insecurity or a lack of consistent access to enough food to live a healthy and active life. In Minnesota, Kyle Gibson would stuff backpacks with food to give to students, he’s donated to food pantries during the two seasons he spent in Texas, and now he’s aligned with Philabundance and Cradles to Crayons, two foundations located in Philadelphia.
Philabundance is the largest food bank in the region. Last year alone, the food bank distributed 57 million pounds of food to those located in the Delaware Valley, that were in need. Cradles to Crayons also helps out those in need by providing children with essential items for school like books, backpacks, shoes, coats, and even toys.
Combining Giving Back and Baseball
This season, Kyle Gibson and his wife, Elizabeth, are going to donate Philabundance for every strikeout that he throws. For every Phillies win, the couple will also donate to Cradles to Crayons. Gibson is inviting fans to join him, and he even launched a website for the cause.
Gibson has 3 children with his wife Elizabeth, and they all have a passion to help kids both internationally and domestically. Any time they can help people in a tough situation, they do. Together with his wife, he’s gone on mission trips to the Dominican Republic and Haiti, raised over $160,000 for the Boys and Girls Club, and more.
Kyle Gibson started his donations during the Arizona Diamondbacks and Phillies game on August 19th. Now, each strikeout and win will be even more significant.