Major League Baseball cancelled the 2020 All-Star Game on Friday on account of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Los Angeles Dodgers were scheduled to host this year’s All-Star Game on July 14. Instead, the Dodgers will host the festivities in 2022. Next year’s All-Star Game will be played in Atlanta.
“Once it became clear we were unable to hold this year’s All-Star festivities, we wanted to award the Dodgers with the next available All-Star Game, which is 2022,” commissioner Rob Manfred said in a statement. “I want to thank the Dodgers organization and the city of Los Angeles for being collaborative partners in the early stages of All-Star preparation and for being patient and understanding in navigating the uncertainty created by the pandemic. The 2022 All-Star celebration promises to be a memorable one with events throughout the city and at picturesque Dodger Stadium.”
In a statement, Dodgers CEO and president Stan Kassel said:
“As excited as we were to host this year’s All-Star Game, we know that it will be worth the wait and that Dodger Stadium and Los Angeles will host a world-class event in 2022. We’d like to thank Commissioner Rob Manfred for re-awarding All-Star Week to Los Angeles so quickly, as well as mayor Eric Garcetti and council member Gil Cedillo for their continued support of this premier sporting event, which will have lasting benefits for our community.”
2022 will be the third time the All-Star Game will be played in Los Angeles. The Dodgers last hosted the game in 1980, as well as in 1959 at Memorial Coliseum.
This is the first time since 1945 that the All-Star Game has been cancelled. In 1945, the game was nixed due to travel restrictions from World War II.
MLB’s 60-game season starts on July 23.
