PITTSBURGH — Two hours, 42 minutes before the sun peeked over the coastline in the wee hours Saturday morning, the first bus carrying minor leaguers left the Cardinals’ complex in Jupiter, Fla., and headed toward a season some had been waiting on for 20 months.
“They jumped on that bus,” a team official said.
The excitement of a minor-league season starting after every level cancelled its 2020 season due to the global pandemic was also the challenge that faced teams this past week as they sorted the hats their prospects would wear to start 2021. The minor leagues have changed.