Coronavirus: Japanese baseball season gets June 19 start date

Professional baseball in Japan will begin its season on June 19, three months later than scheduled, because of the coronavirus pandemic.

No fans will attend games when the Nippon Professional Baseball league opens play.

"I am very pleased we could settle on an Opening Day," says commissioner Atsushi Saito. "But we will prepare. 

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"It is important to proceed carefully to protect the players, the people connected with the game and their families. We have created detailed guidelines so we can safely hold games."

He says there is no timetable for fans returning to games.

"We have been solely focused on whether or not we could even hold games without fans," he says. "When the situation gets better, of course, we will be able to think about fans at games, but we are not having detailed discussions about it.

"When we get to that stage, then we will carefully consider the necessary guidance to do so."

Teams will play 120 games, but the league is expected to overhaul the planned schedule to minimise travel. Pre-season games will begin June 2.

Reuters