After serving as the Yankees alternate site in 2020 when the minor league season was canceled, PNC Field is once again set to host the RailRiders and Triple-A baseball this spring.
                                 Times Leader file photo

After serving as the Yankees alternate site in 2020 when the minor league season was canceled, PNC Field is once again set to host the RailRiders and Triple-A baseball this spring.

Times Leader file photo

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The details will have to come later. Starting times for games, COVID-19 protocols, the possibility of fans in attendance — all of it still needs to be finalized.

On Thursday, though, there was at last a date and a schedule for the return of Triple-A baseball to the area.

The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders will be back on the diamond on April 6 at PNC Field to start a 142-game schedule. It will be the franchise’s first game since a playoff loss to Durham on Sept. 17, 2019. The entire 2020 minor league season was wiped out by the pandemic.

But things are on the verge of starting back up again as pitchers and catchers for the parent New York Yankees have reported to Florida.

“We are excited to release this schedule as a positive sign towards baseball in Moosic this year,” RailRiders President John Adams said through the team. “While certainly several factors must still be clarified to help us move forward with a safe and successful season, this schedule is the first sign of things to come.

“The front office is hopeful for the return of baseball and seeing our loyal fans at PNC Field very soon.”

When the RailRiders finally do return, a new minor-league landscape awaits them, as Major League Baseball overhauled the system this offseason.

Earlier this month, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre officially signed the license to be the Yankees’ Triple-A affiliate for another 10 seasons through 2030.

The RailRiders will be playing in the new 20-team Triple-A East league, but the 2021 schedule will see them play only the five other teams in the Northeast Division — Buffalo, Lehigh Valley, Rochester, Syracuse and Worcester — “in an effort to reduce travel for health and safety reasons.”

Worcester — the Red Sox affiliate that moved from Pawtucket — will be the opening day opponent. Each week will consist of a six-game series against the same team at the same venue, with Mondays designated as an off day for travel.

This will continue for the entire regular season, which is set to run later than usual and conclude on Sept. 19.

All of it, of course, remains subject to change depending on public health conditions. The RailRiders announced Thursday that season ticket plans and luxury suites are on sale with start times, protocols and promotions to be determined at a later date.

All of baseball’s minor leagues under the new system will shift to the regionalized six-game series plan with a common off day. The effort cuts scheduled travel mileage by 28-56% and reduces expenses in the leagues’ first season of operations under MLB.

MLB reduced affiliated farm teams to 120 from 160 in the first season after the end of the Professional Baseball Agreement between Major League Baseball and the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues, which governed the minors. The PBA had existed since 1901 but was allowed to expire at the end of 2020 as MLB took over running the minors.

While the Triple-A East League opens April 6, the new Triple-A West, as the new leagues are called for now, will start April 8.

If opening day needs to be pushed back because of the pandemic, it could be moved to May 4, which would match opening day at Double-A and Class A, where teams are scheduled for 120 games apiece.

In that scenario, prospects from Triple-A are likely to spend April at alternate training camps — PNC Field served as the site for the Yankees in 2020. Double-A and below would remain at extended spring training.

Each league will be off every Monday, except for Triple-A West, which will be off each Wednesday. The different off day was requested by owners in that league because purchasing plane tickets was cheaper for those teams for Wednesday travel than for Sunday night or Monday.

Triple-A East teams will average 6,808 miles, down from 11,579 for the International League in 2019. Triple-A West teams will average 14,609, down from 20,081 for the Pacific Coast League.

At Double-A, the average dropped to 4,549 in the East, 3,925 in the South and 5,233 in the Central from 8,953 in the Eastern League, 7,635 in the Southern League and 11,328 in the Texas League.

At High A, the average will be 3,672 in the East, 4,671 in the West and 3,544 in the Central, down from 4,005 in the Florida State League, 5,386 in the California League and 6,859 in the Carolina League.

At Low A, the average will be 2,962 in the East, 1,731 in the Southeast and 2,356 in the West, down from 7,533 in the Midwest League and 10,011 in the South Atlantic League.

Minor league seasons are scheduled to end Sept. 19, except for in the Triple-A West, where they end Sept. 21. Minor league seasons traditionally ended on Labor Day weekend, but the later conclusion to the regular season provides a place for major league clubs to send players on optional assignments until close to the end of the big league regular season on Oct. 3.

The only minor league All-Star Game this year will be at Triple-A. There has not been a decision on whether to have postseasons, and they may not be held this year due to the pandemic.

While players with major league contracts started reporting Wednesday, most players with minor league deals won’t report until April 1.

An expanded active roster limit will be set at 28 at Triple-A and Double-A and 30 at Class A, up from 25 throughout the minors in 2019.

There are three new affiliates: the St. Paul Saints at Triple-A for Minnesota, the Sugar Land Skeeters at Triple-A for Houston, and the Somerset Patriots at Double-A for the New York Yankees.

Six new ballparks include: ABC Supply Stadium in Beloit, Wisconsin; Fredericksburg Ballpark in Fredericksburg, Virginia; Atrium Health Ballpark in Kannapolis, North Carolina; Toyota Field in Madison, Alabama; Riverfront Stadium in Wichita, Kansas; and Polar Park in Worcester, Massachusetts.

A new limit caps domestic-based minor leaguers at 190 per organization, which drops to 180 on minor league opening day. In addition to the four affiliates with player development licenses, each team has a fifth farm team of rookie-level players at its spring training complex.

Salaries for players with minor league contracts are rising 38% to 72%. The weekly minimum rises from $290 to $400 at rookie level, $290 to $500 at Class A, $350 to $600 at Double-A, and $502 to $700 at Triple-A. For players on 40-man rosters on optional or outright assignment to the minors, the minimum is covered by the Major League Baseball Players Association collective bargaining agreement and rises from $46,000 to $46,600 for a player signing his first major league contract. For a player signing a second or later major league contract, the minimum increases from $91,800 to $93,000.

The New York-Penn League, which started in 1939, was eliminated and the Pioneer League, founded the same year, lost its affiliated status and became an independent partner league. The Appalachian League was converted to a college summer circuit for rising freshmen and sophomores.