NATIONWIDE — There’s nothing quite like it: fresh-cut grass on a hot day, the crack of a bat, the pop of a fastball hitting a catcher’s mitt, N-95 masks, frequent nasal swabs, and empty stands. Baseball is back, adjusted for the unpredictability of 2020 amid the coronavirus pandemic.

If ever America needed a wholesome distraction, it’s now – and Major League Baseball is the quintessential American distraction. Fans who were hoping a ball game would allow them to forget about COVID-19 for a few hours might be a little disappointed. Reminders of the pandemic will be all over the field, dugouts, and in various rule changes.

Still, a quirky version of baseball is better than no baseball at all. Fans can finally get their first look at all the high-profile players who have changed teams. Of course, their enthusiasm might be tempered by the many players who have opted out of the season. In 2020’s version of America’s pastime, there’s always a “but.”

For fans, the offseason could be described as, well, off-putting. After a few extra months of waiting, contentious contract negotiations between owners and players, a litany of new rules and safety precautions, and a “summer camp” that replaced spring training, fans finally get an opening day to celebrate. Here’s a crash-course on some of the significant differences you can expect to see in this pandemic-shortened 60-game season:

Fans who have already caught televised summer camp games have undoubtedly noticed the most glaring difference in the mid-apocalypse version of baseball: The stands are empty. For television purposes, noise is piped into the stadiums. For example, on Tuesday night’s Rangers-Rockies game broadcast on Fox Sports Southwest, the “home crowd” roared when there were two strikes on a Rockies player.

To complete the illusion, some stadiums will fill seats with cardboard cutouts of people. Dubbed “Pinch Sitters” by the San Francisco Chronicle, fans in San Fran, Oakland, L.A., and a few other locales can purchase cutout likenesses to be placed in the stands for games – just to add a surreal touch to baseball’s return amid the coronavirus.

In the interest of player and staff safety, the league released a lengthy list of new protocols. Everyone in the clubhouse will be required to wear a mask. The league will also limit the number of people allowed in clubhouses. In the dugout, coaches and staff will be required to mask up. On the field, no one is required to wear a mask, but the protocol strongly encourages everyone to do so.

The rules go on to suggest fielders “retreat several steps away from the baserunner” between pitches. First and third base coaches are not to approach baserunners or umpires, and players should not socialize with opponents.

To allow for physical distancing, only coaches, vital support staff, and players who are likely to enter the game should be in the dugout. Inactive players have the option of sitting in auxiliary seating areas, including the stands, and with 6 feet of space between them. Leaning on the dugout railing or ledges is only permissible as long as there’s a clean towel as a barrier. Dugout phones, batting helmets, and other equipment has to be disinfected with anti-viral wipes after each use. Even balls that have touched multiple hands will be thrown away.

You also won’t see bat boys and girls, lineup card exchanges, or the ball going “around the horn” when infielders toss the ball around after an out.

COVID-19 has halted one of baseball's great traditions: spitting. Players aren’t allowed to spit saliva, sunflower seeds, hot rhymes, or anything at all. Since pitchers frequently rub their hands with saliva, they can carry a wet rag in their pockets.

Hugs, high-fives, fist bumps, elaborate handshakes, and other celebrations that involve touching are now banned.

When traveling, everyone involved with the team must wear their PPE. Players cannot go to restaurants on the road. They are expected to isolate as much as possible away from the ballpark, though many will be living with family members, and all will be traveling regionally, albeit with significantly more protections than the general public. Players will be tested for the coronavirus regularly, but not daily.

The game itself will also look significantly different because of a few COVID-related rule changes. For one, the way rosters have been constructed and maintained throughout the season is entirely novel, since the minor league season was canceled.

Each team has a 60-player pool eligible to participate this season, including players not on 40-man rosters and under contract. A team at 60 cannot add a player except by removing a player via a transaction.

Rosters have expanded from 25 to 30, and each team can carry three additional players on a “taxi squad” to fill in due to injuries. There will be a separate injury list for players who test positive for COVID-19, with no time limits for recovery.

The rule change that has furrowed the most brows has to be the universal DH. All National League games will include the use of the designated hitter for the first time in history as part of an emphasis on pitcher health.

A rule change that wasn’t related to the pandemic will also debut this season. Managers can no longer bring in pitchers for only one or two batters. Every relief pitcher must face a minimum of three batters. The rule was introduced in February to speed up the games.

In an effort to end games quicker, each team will now start extra innings with a runner on second base. The change is also expected to protect a team's bullpen health and limit the time players spend in the relatively close quarters of a dugout or bullpen.

For many fans, the learning curve for this season will be steep. Aside from the deluge of new rules and safety precautions, there is still the usual intrigue of player movement and other big plot lines to remember.

Maybe the biggest story of this offseason has been the players you won’t see. Given the unique circumstances of the season, players were given a choice to opt-out of the season altogether.  Some of the highest-profile players who are sitting out the season include Rockies outfielder Ian Desmond, Braves pitcher Felix Hernandez, Cardinals pitcher Jordan Hicks, White Sox hurler Michael Kopech, Diamondbacks pitcher Mike Leake, Braves outfielder Nick Markakis, Giants catcher Buster Posey, Dodgers pitcher David Price, Nationals pitcher Joe Ross, and their first baseman Ryan Zimmerman.

Like every other offseason, big-named players changed teams. Some of the most potentially consequential are outfielder Mookie Betts, who was traded from Boston to the Dodgers; pitcher Gerrit Cole signed a massive contract for 9 years and $324 million with the Yankees; infielder Josh Donaldson signed with the Twins; the Rangers stole pitcher Corey Kluber from Cleveland in a trade; outfielder Sterling Marte was traded to the Diamondbacks; Will Smith inked a deal with the Braves; and pitcher Zach Wheeler now works in Philly.

Before the pandemic, the offseason’s biggest story was the Astros cheating scandal. The American League champs were caught in an elaborate system in which they used cameras to steal signs from opponents. The league suspended their manager and general manager, took away a future second-round draft pick, and doled out a hefty fine. Not even Alex Cora, who left the organization to manage the Red Sox, was spared. His new team fired him before he was suspended for one season. The team’s real punishment could come on the field, after many players made threatening overtures toward the ’Stro’s star players.

The only team that will play in a new stadium this season is the Texas Rangers. Reviews of the park have been mixed at best. Inside, the retractable roof will surely make Arlington, Texas, a more desirable place to play in the heat of summer. The outside aesthetics have been the subject of much ridicule in local media. Nicknames for the park have included: The Panini Press in Arlington and Globe Life Disposable Lake Grill.

If this MLB season fails, it won’t be for lack of preparation or caution. In terms of numbers, the outlook is pretty good. While more than 100 players have tested positive for COVID-19, with 66 publicly acknowledging so, the majority of those cases came before players reported to their camps.

Thirteen players tested positive in the first week of every-other-day “maintenance testing,” and that number was more than halved in the second week. Should that trend line continue, it will boost the chances the season will make it until the end.