Gov says: Play ball in NY

Tuesday, July 28, 2020 - 21:38

ALBANY COUNTY — The state has talked to the county about youth sport teams that have traveled out of New York to compete, said the county executive, Daniel McCoy, at his press briefing on Tuesday.

Sports teams are to play only locally in the midst of the coronavirus crackdown. Local kids, McCoy said, have competed in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

“You’re not supposed to be playing basketball at all or lacrosse or soccer,” said McCoy of close-contact sports. He added, “Football is still not a go.”

On Tuesday, Governor Andrew Cuomo added three states — Illinois, Kentucky, and Minnesota — as well as Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. to the list of places from which travelers will be required to quarantine for 14 days when they arrive in New York.

He also issued an invitation to Major League Baseball teams to play in New York State.

He said of televised games, without fans in attendance, “I think it would be good for the economy, I think it would be good for the psyche, I think it would be good for the nation’s soul.”

Cuomo, talking to the press in a conference call, also said, “Getting spring training for the Yankees and Mets in New York was a big deal. Getting the Blue Jays to play in Buffalo, that’s an exciting, big deal, it’s great for Buffalo, great for New York.”

The governor went on, “New York State has one of the lowest infection rates in the United States. New York State has a full Department of Health protocol system in place, we have a testing system in place. I offer to Major League Baseball, if you’re having problems playing in other states, come play here.

“We will set up a health protocol — they could fly their team in on a private aircraft, they could go from the airport to a hotel where they would be quarantined, we would test everyone, we would get the test results back and then they could play ball in our stadium, then they could get on a plane and fly home.”

He concluded, “There’s no fans anyway so it's just about the coverage, and New York is the media capital. So I offer that for what it is worth because I would love to see a robust baseball season.”

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