After being kicked out of Canada, the Blue Jays are roosting at PNC Park this year.
The Blue Jays and Pirates were connected this week after the Blue Jays and Major League Baseball were not granted exemption from Canada's Quarantine Act, meaning they cannot hold the season in Toronto.
Sportsnet's Hazel Mae was the first with the news of it being official.
While the Blue Jays were considering multiple potential spots this year, including Buffalo, N.Y., home of their Class AAA team, and Dunedin, Fla., where their spring training facilities are located, they, the league and players association preferred they play in a major-league park if possible.
The Pirates are not only fairly close geographically to Toronto, but there is not much overlay in the two team's schedules, making this possible to coordinate. The Pirates and Blue Jays only have seven home games scheduled for the same day, though the first conflict comes early, on July 27.
"This will be a monumental challenge for our staff, but leaning in to help others is what Pittsburghers do best," Pirates president Travis Williams said in a statement earlier this week, confirming the rumors of it being a possibility.
The Pirates' new management team has strong ties to the Blue Jays. General manager Ben Cherington and assistant general manager Steve Sanders both spent the past three seasons with the organization, and manager Derek Shelton was a quality control coach in 2017.
"I think if it’s a situation where they need someplace to play, and we can help out, then I think we should," Shelton said Monday night in Cleveland. "I do feel that major-league teams should play in major-league ballparks, and if it works out way above my pay grade that they figure it out, then I think it would be cool."
There will still be plenty of logistical issues to work out between now and July 27, including where the Blue Jays will set up in PNC Park, where they will live and doing extra duty to make sure everyone is following Major League Baseball's health and safety protocols. It will be the Blue Jays making most of the concessions, though, since they are the visitors.
"If they want to make the North Shore their home for 2020, by all means," Trevor Williams said Monday. "It's just going to be a few extra precautionary steps with our health protocol and with our staff. It’ll be a busy, busy summer at PNC Park."
