Notebook: In observing new rules in place, players will have to give up familiar routines in 2020

Baseball players, like most professional athletes, are notoriously routine-driven.

They like to arrive at the ballpark at the same time. Some like to come in early and socialize in the clubhouse. Some have daily regimens they follow.

But all of that will change in 2020 as players are discouraged from spending too much time around others and won't be admitted to the ballpark as early as normal. It will be an adjustment for some.

"It's definitely going to have to change,'' confirmed J.D. Martinez. "I think that's evident with everything that we all are seeing. But you have to kind of adapt to it, find a way to find a new routine and make it work. It's a different time when you can only go to the (batting) cage at a structured time, everybody has their own time slot. It's fine now, but when the chaos of the season starts, it's one of those things where somebody gets hurt and they have to go to the training staff and then their schedule gets pushed back and then someone else gets bumped.

"It's going to be a constant shuffle. I think that's going to be kind of the hardest part for me, schedule-wise, I would say.''

In-game habits and practices will also undergo changes. Martinez is fond of discussing hitting in the dugout with teammates and dissecting swings and mechanical adjustments, but that will be much tougher with social distancing rules in place.



"It definitely changes it, that's for sure,'' said Martinez. "I've already had a couple of guys ask me, 'Hey, when can you come to the cage?' and I'm like, 'I can't; they won't let me.' Especially with me -- I'm asthmatic and I'm very scared of everything. It definitely changes the role. I try to do my best and try to do the best I can. We have our advance meetings and I don't know how that's going to go. I'm definitely going to do my best and still try to help. But you have to respect the whole situation, really.''

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Unsurprisingly, Martinez is happy to see the DH come to both leagues. That move was done as a safety measure this year, since it eliminated the need for pitchers to run the bases. But there's a consensus that the DH will soon by universally adopted for the NL in coming seasons, too.

"You're kind of asking a biased person here,'' said Martinez, 'but I'm all for it. Obviously, I'm a DH. I think you can speak to a lot of pitchers who are for it too. A lot of pitchers in the AL like it because they feel like (currently) the pitchers in the NL had an advantage -- it's one less hitter that they have to face because of it. So, I like it. I like to even the playing field across the board.

"I see the history of it and stuff like that, so I see the other side of it, too. But I'm in favor of it. I think it keeps everybody safe, it keeps the game fun, it's more offense which is what fans like to see. You don't have the whole 'He had a 2.00 ERA in the NL, so in the AL, that's going to really be a 3.00.' Now it makes even across the board to everybody.''

Martinez has opt-outs after this season and next and could have more suitors to bid for his services.

"I'd be lying if I said I (hadn't thought about that),'' he said. "That's 15 more (DH) jobs around the league. Like I said, I'm in favor of it. It will make things really interesting.''

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Ron Roenicke said the Red Sox plan to begin playing intrasquad games Thursday, with Nathan Eovaldi pitching for one of the teams. The Sox are aiming for five or so innings for the first game, but will adjust the length of games to tailor to their work to specific days. Over the final week of camp, Roenicke said the team will shift the games to nights to get the players more acclimated to their regular-season schedule and sleep cycle.

Roenicke is unsure when Caleb Simpson, added to the team's Player Pool Saturday, will join the club in Boston...Roenicke also had no further updates about the team's COVID-19 testing or the status of players who have either tested positive (Darwinzon Hernandez, Josh Taylor) or been delayed while they await the result of a test (Eduardo Rodriguez)....Martinez is enjoying the novelty of dressing in Fenway's luxury suites. "I'm going to talk to Tony Clark (executive director of the Players Association) and see if he can put that in the next CBA,'' Martinez joked.