The Norfolk Tides, Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles since 2007, aren’t going anywhere. The team signed Major League Baseball’s Professional Development License Wednesday, team President Ken Young confirmed. The deal will keep the Tides affiliated with the Orioles for the next 10 years.
The 2020 Minor League season was cancelled entirely due to the pandemic but there is optimism a 2021 season will happen. Even if it does look different.
“We just don’t know what our capacity will be,” Young said. “So what I expect is we’ll open at one number, and it’ll gradually increase throughout the season. Do we ever get to 100%? Don’t know.”
The season is expected to begin in early April but that could change based on COVID-19 cases in the area. “I think there’s a chance,” he said. “I think it’s going to depend on what the numbers look like between now and then, obviously, if cases seem to be coming down and people are getting the vaccine.
“Who knows what this looks like by the middle of March?”
