Earlier this month, MLB approved of a new playoff format that included a bubble environment to protect the health of the players while also allowing families to be allowed into games. The Wild Card Series will be located at the home stadium of each higher-seeded team before the rest of the playoffs will be relocated to neutral sites. The NL will be moved to Texas while the AL will come to Southern California.
The Dodgers have already entrenched themselves into a smaller bubble in Los Angeles. Last Wednesday after their game against the Oakland A’s, the team and their families were checked into a hotel to quarantine in preparation for the playoffs. However, some players were granted exemption from the bubble if they had kids.
On an episode of the Turners’ Holding Kourt Podcast, they discussed their daily life inside of the bubble.
“So we go down, get our COVID test checked off, it’s a different time every day. They send out a kind of list of what the meals are gonna be. Grab your breakfast, go back upstairs, eat, do whatever we need to do. Obviously Justin’s today doing the podcast and then gonna go to the field.”
They go on to say that they are tested daily and are confined to the hotel grounds. They can take walks around the hotel or work out in their rooms but are not allowed to physically interact with others outside of the bubble. Unlike the Twins and Astros game which saw the presence of families of the players, the families of the Dodgers are not allowed to be present in this series due to Los Angeles County’s guidelines.
If the Dodgers are to move past this round to the National Division Series, then the families would surely be allowed in the stadiums due to the games being played in Texas. For now, though they will have to cheer on their dads, husbands, boyfriends, etc. from the safety of their hotel rooms.
Game 1 of the Wild Card Series
September 30th, @7:08PM on ESPN
