Saturday Morning Hot Links

Like many "outlets" I'm going to struggle with how to fill these posts. It could be that some mornings, there's just nothing, a la December/January. But I, like you, rely on the rhythms of baseball to mark the time. There are times you win, there are times that you lose, but you show up the next day and do it again. Baseball is basically real life, though the pay scale is markedly different. For now, Baseball is no more. It will be again, but it is not now. As I've used this platform as a form of self-therapy for over 11 years, there are a few things I'd like to note at the beginning (for you, and for me):

1. Baseball is not important right now. Containing this virus is. Let's not complicate things. Everything isn't always about me/you.
2. If "overreacting" means that fewer people die and the virus doesn't spread as widely, then let's all happily overreact.
3. You may be in the demographic that isn't facing as high of a risk of death. Congratulations. Now have some empathy for those who are not in the same boat.
4. Sports will come back, I think. And when they do, it's going to be really cool.
5. If you're going to the store, get what you need, and let everyone else get what they need. Don't be these people.

*Chandler Rome: Astros players were told they have three options: (1) Go to Houston, (2) Stay in West Palm Beach and get their regular per diem, (3) Go Home.

*Here's an FAQ from Brian McTaggart on the Astros and Coronavirus. Tags:
The Astros have closed their Spring Training facility to the public and the media, but it will be open for players who want to come in and get medical treatment from trainers or if they want to work out. They are staggering workouts to avoid gatherings in large groups. However, there are no organized workouts being held at the present time. 

I guess the question is "are the players safer together, where if one player catches Coronavirus, it spreads through the rest of the team; or is it safer to go back to their homes?"

*Dusty Baker has played and managed through uncertain seasons, now he is in charge of another one.

*Check out AstrosFansUK's podcast with Jon Morosi talking about the surrealism of what's happening, growing the game in the UK, and a surprise MLB champion!

*MLB is still hoping for 162 games, with postponed games played on the back-end of the schedule.

*An Arizona minor-leaguer has tested positive for Coronavirus.

*This pandemic has affected the hourly workers at sporting events hardest.

*Andy McCullough: Why I will miss Opening Day.

*Texas Monthly: What you should know about the Coronavirus in Texas.

*English Football is preparing for a "full shutdown" until September. Numerous soccer teams could go under due to the loss of ticket revenue. What about the European Championships?
UEFA have started to make plans to move the European Championships from this summer to 2021, ahead of a key Tuesday video conference that could determine the fate of the continental season, including the under-pressure Premier League.

*NPR, in an interview with Politico reporter Dan Diamond:
My understanding is that Azar did not push to do aggressive additional testing in recent weeks, and that's partly because more testing might have led to more cases being discovered of Coronavirus outbreak, and the president had made clear - the lower the numbers on Coronavirus, the better for the president, the better for his potential reelection this fall.

*How Fox News misled viewers about Coronavirus.

*Senegal is testing people & getting results within four hours. They're about to get results within 10 minutes.

*Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba, is donating 500,000 testing kits and 1,000,000 masks to the United States.

*The 100 best movies on Netflix right now. Or you can watch Julia Child on Amazon Prime.

*The Dos and Don'ts of Social Distancing.

*Slate: We're not going back to the way life was before.

*Is your school district canceled for the next week or two? Check out this Google Doc of free educational resources available online.

*A Musical Selection: