Major League Baseball has reached a deal with its players to start a 60-game season on July 24. League commissioner Rob Manfred had postponed the season indefinitely in March to slow the spread of the new coronavirus, and players, team owners, and league officials have been in negotiations over how a modified season would proceed since then. The discussions stalled on multiple occasions, and at times a 2020 season seemed unlikely to take place at all. Spring training facilities in Florida were closed for cleaning in June in response to 40 MLB players and staff members testing positive for COVID-19. Preseason training elsewhere will begin July 1.