Tri-City manager holding out hope

Even with the minor league baseball season in serious jeopardy of being canceled, new Tri-City ValleyCats manager Wladimir Sutil tries to look at the bright side.

At least he gets to spend more time with his wife and three children while he's home in Corpus Christi, Texas during the coronavirus pandemic. Normally he'd be at the Houston Astros' spring-training facility in West Palm Beach, Fla. this time of year.

"I've been busy doing homework with my kids," said Sutil, who has an 8-year-old son and 4-year-old daughter learning online and a 3-year-old son.

On the other hand, there's the worry and uncertainty of not knowing whether he's going to get to manage the short-season Class A ValleyCats, the team for which he played 15 years ago. Or if he's going to keep his job, for that matter.

The ValleyCats are scheduled to open on June 18 at Vermont and at home June 24 against Williamsport. But professional baseball hasn't begun at any level and there's been no announcement from Major League Baseball or MiLB if there will be a season.

"Before this happened, we had plans when to leave, when we're going to arrive in Tri-City," said Sutil, who was in Florida when the pandemic struck. "We came back home and everything stopped. So we're just waiting to know what is next. What's the next move? I don't have any type of information I can give you right now, (that) we're going to Tri-City on this date, because I don't know."

It doesn't look promising. CBS Sports reported it's "extremely unlikely" there will be minor league baseball, even if the majors begin play. The New York Daily News said "there is almost certainly" not going to be a minor league season. ValleyCats president Rick Murphy said last week he's "cautiously optimistic."

For the time being, Sutil has been assigned at...