In the first round of Major League Baseball coronavirus testing, 31 players tested positive for COVID-19, the league and the players union announced Friday.
Along with the players, seven staff members also tested positive. The 38 positives represent 1.2% of 3,185 samples collected for the first set of results. For comparison, the NBA reported a 5.3% positive test rate (16 out of 302) among players on June 26, while MLS announced a positive rate of 2.7% (18 out of 668) among players. players two days later.
The positives come from 19 MLB teams, the league said, as the 30 teams started training camp Friday at their ballparks.
MLB will not identify who tests positive for the coronavirus, citing the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The teams also won’t specifically announce a COVID-19 disabled list placement for a player who is removed from the club after testing positive, just one trip off the disabled list.
If a player’s test is positive for COVID-19, they will be instructed to immediately isolate themselves. He will be dealt with protocols detailed in the operations manual that the league and union agreed to as part of the negotiations that resulted in a 2020 season of 60 games.
Cleveland Indians outfielder Delino DeShields Jr. was a player announced as positive on Friday, according to Chris Antonetti, the team’s president of baseball operations.
The MLB 2020 season will begin on July 23 or 24.
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