We're all excited here.

You know, it's been a long, long road, long journey to get here to opening day.

But I know our team's ready.

You know, it's been a crazy year.

It affected a lot of people, a lot of families.

And, you know, I'm just excited to get back on the field and start playing the game that I love.

That was Yankee slucker Aaron Judge, speaking for all of us, really, about a day that seemed

like it might never come.

Tonight, Judge's Yankees square off against the defending World Series champion Washington

Nationals in what promises to be the strangest opening day in baseball history.

No fans, no high fives, no spitting even.

But still, it's baseball.

Today, ESPN's Jeff Passen joins us from D.C.

to tell us what to expect from the sports return

and what it will take for baseball to stick around.

I mean it times. It's Thursday, July 23rd. This is ESPN daily.

So, Jeff, you're in D.C. where the world champion nationals will open up today against the

New York Yankees for the first quote unquote regular season baseball game

in 2020. But the Dodgers who are playing later, well, they decided to steal everyone's thunder

by signing their superstar outfielder Mukie Betts to a 13-year $392 million deal. We're going to

break that deal down later and talk about the Dodgers. But I first want to ask you

about the timing. Do you think it was specifically because they wanted to make your life more difficult?

...