Major League Baseball and almost all other professional sports leagues are on an indefinite hiatus because of the global pandemic, but there is one member of last year’s Blue Jays team who still makes his living on the diamond.

Veteran left-hander Ryan Feierabend, who spent most of last year with the triple-A Buffalo Bisons and made a pair of appearances for the big-league club, currently resides in Taiwan, where he was the opening day pitcher for the Uni-President Lions of the Chinese Professional Baseball League.

While Feierabend’s former teammates are self-isolating in North America, his life overseas has been somewhat normal. Taiwan’s season began on April 11 and he has already made a couple of starts for his new team. Games are played without fans and there are heightened restrictions to protect public health, but his daily routine has been left relatively unchanged.

“With everything going on with COVID-19, we’re so fortunate to be able to play baseball, to be able to provide for our families,” the 34-year-old Feierabend, who spent parts of five seasons in the majors, said in a telephone interview. “It’s unbelievable to think that there are so many guys at home who rely on this job.

“Guys in double-A, triple-A that don’t have money saved, it’s like, ‘OK, now I’m going to have to give up my training because I have to support my family.’ We’re just very fortunate — we talk about it all the time — to still be playing baseball, still getting paid and (going) about a somewhat normal everyday life over here.”

Feierabend joined the Jays last spring on a minor-league deal after four seasons in Korea. His stint in Toronto lasted just two appearances, but he made history by becoming the first lefty knuckleballer to appear in a big-league game in more than 20 years.

A back injury then derailed the rest of his 2019 season. He returned for Buffalo’s final game to throw an inning out of the bullpen, but it was too late to land another deal in North America. Instead, he turned to Taiwan, where teams had previously expressed interest, and by January he had a deal in place for the upcoming year.

Feierabend flew overseas in early February, before the coronavirus had been declared a pandemic. He reported to camp and joined his teammates on a two-week trip to the eastern part of the state. Everything seemed fine when they left, but by the time the team returned large sections of the world were facing dire situations.

The CPBL, which is comparable to double-A, twice postponed the start of its season because of health concerns before play got underway in mid-April. The Korean Baseball League season is tentatively set to begin May 5, but right now Taiwan is the only place with regular-season baseball games.

“I feel like I’m in a very safe environment, the way they’re taking care of us over here,” Feierabend said. “My wife and kids are stuck at home in isolation and quarantine. My kids just found out the rest of the school year is cancelled. To be honest, I would feel more comfortable if they were here with me right now (instead of the U.S.) with everything going on. I don’t like to get political or whatever, but I think (Taiwan is) like a model as for what other countries could possibly do to help flatten the curve.”

Taiwan has received universal praise for its handling of the crisis. The small island off the southeast coast of China is home to more than 23 million people and yet the deadly disease hasn’t made much of an impact. Businesses and schools remained open, and there have been fewer than 500 confirmed cases with a death total reportedly limited to single digits.

There are at least a few theories as to why. Government officials began testing months before a pandemic was declared, there have been strict quarantine measures and, more controversially, mobile data was used to track citizens who tested positive.

Feierabend has lived through it all. Before entering the stadium for home games, players get their temperature checked. On the road, similar protocols are followed before anyone is allowed on the bus. Masks must be worn indoors, and infrared thermometers are used before anyone is allowed into restaurants, large malls or public transit. Hand sanitizer can be found just about everywhere.

At the ball field, life goes on. Feierabend still fist-bumps teammates during games and after bullpen sessions. Catchers still throw the ball around the infield after a strikeout. Handshakes and high-fives after home runs are discouraged, but more drastic changes have been abandoned.

“They didn’t even want us to spit on the field, and it’s like, ‘Well, as a baseball player that’s a natural habit,’” Feierabend, a third-round pick in the 2003 draft, said with a laugh. “You do it without even thinking about it. They didn’t want us to do any of that, but eventually they leaned off on a lot of those things, knowing that’s part of baseball.”

Aside from being separated from his family, he says he’s enjoying the experience and has nothing but praise for the CPBL and local government. The native of Ohio has seen firsthand how sport can be played safely when proper protocols are in place.

That might bode well for MLB returning at some point this summer, but Feierabend is less confident about that. He feels there are just too many other factors at play.

The CPBL must isolate just four teams vs. 30 in North America, for example, and players in Taiwan aren’t represented by a union. They either show up or they don’t get paid, whereas the MLB Players Association negotiated partial payment of contracts and the accumulation of service time to help members.

Still, there isn’t much doubt that MLB is keeping a close eye on what’s happening in Taiwan, and what’s about to get underway in Korea. Temperature checks and COVID-19 testing procedures could be copied, and the league could seek guidance on easing social distancing concerns at the ballpark.

“As you look at what’s happened in Korea and Taiwan, I think there are models for us,” Jays president Mark Shapiro said. “Understanding that handshakes are not going to be the same for any of us in our society and culture, let alone for baseball players too ... There’s a lot to be learned there.”

As for Feierabend, this isn’t quite what he signed up for. His family was supposed to visit this summer, but those plans are now on hold. The 120-game season is not scheduled to wrap up until October, but he knows that could change if the region is hit with a second wave of the virus.

Earlier this month, Taiwan got a dose of how precarious the situation remains. A fleet of ships docked in the region and a group of sailors were permitted to disembark. Of that group, 28 later tested positive, which brought renewed fears of an outbreak.

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The future of the virus cannot be predicted with certainty, but Feierabend seems content right where he is. The southpaw with 119 major-league innings under his belt is still making a living by throwing baseballs, and not too many people can say that right now.

“It all comes down to my wife. She’s the rock of our family,” Feierabend said. “She holds it all together and she’s been like that since day one. She’s allowed me to pursue my dream of playing baseball, and it’s provided for my family very well for what is going on my 18th year playing already.

“It’s a sacrifice being away from my family. Having to deal with that while the pandemic is going on, it’s definitely stressful. It’s very high anxiety at times. But my wife Sarah does a great job of keeping me calm, knowing things are OK.”