MIAMI – The Marlins’ coronavirus outbreak could jeopardize the Major League Baseball season, Dr. Anthony Fauci said Tuesday, although he doesn’t think games should stop now.
More than a dozen Marlins players and staff tested positive for COVID-19, left the team in Philadelphia, and raised new questions about MLB’s attempts to lead a season.
“This could put you in danger,” said Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. “I don’t think they should stop, but we just have to follow this and see what happens to other teams day by day.”
Fauci made his comments on ABC’s “Good Morning America.”
“The Major League Baseball – the players, the owners, the managers – have put a lot of effort into coming together and putting protocols that we think would work,” Fauci said. “What happened with Miami is very unfortunate [Marlins]”
His outbreak continued to disrupt the Major League Baseball schedule on Tuesday, the sixth day of the pandemic season delayed, with the Marlins’ home game against Baltimore postponed.
Monday’s game between those teams was also suspended, as was the Yankees’ first game of the series on Monday in Philadelphia, where New York would have been in the same clubhouse the Marlins used last weekend.
The Marlins had at least 11 players and two coaches tested positive in recent days.
“Obviously, we don’t want any player exposed. It’s not a positive thing,” commissioner Rob Manfred said on the MLB Network. “But I don’t see it as a nightmare … We believe we can keep people safe and keep playing.”
The Orioles, who made a trip to Miami without playing a game, are slated to host the Marlins in a two-game series starting Wednesday.
“If the test results are acceptable, the Marlins will resume play in Baltimore on Wednesday against the Orioles,” said Manfred.
Meanwhile, Chicago White Sox manager Rick Renteria will stay away from his team after experiencing a “mild cough and stuffy nose,” general manager Rick Hahn said. The tests were planned.
The Marlins outbreak was the subject of baseball, and Washington Nationals manager Dave Martinez choked on his words as he discussed the situation. Martinez lost time last season due to a heart condition, and the Nationals are scheduled to play in Miami this weekend.
“I’m going to be honest with you: I’m scared,” said Martinez. “My level of concern went from about eight to 12. I mean this really hits the mark now … I have guys in our club who are also really concerned.”
The Marlins placed infielder Garrett Cooper, outfielder Harold Ramírez and right-hander José Urena on the disabled list. They claimed right-hander Justin Shafer and left-hander Josh Smith from the Cincinnati waivers, and will likely rely heavily on reinforcements from their training camp in Jupiter, Florida.
Manfred said there are factors that would force MLB to alter the plans.
“A team that loses a number of players that made it completely non-competitive would be a problem that we would have to address and think about making a change,” he said. “If that was closing a part of the season, the whole season, that depends on the circumstances. The same with respect to the whole league. You get to a certain point in the whole league where it becomes a threat to health, and certainly we would close at that point. “
MLB and the union held talks on Monday after aspects of the protocols were largely ignored during the first four days of the season, such as the five-year bans and other physical celebrations.
The NBA and NHL plan to resume their seasons in bubble environments, with basketball at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, and hockey in Edmonton, Alberta, and Toronto.
“The NBA and NHL have an advantage: fewer players, a shorter period of time,” said Manfred. “I understand why they did what they did. I’m just not sure it was feasible for us.”
The NFL has chosen not to create a bubble environment as the training grounds open for next season.
“They may have to go in a bubble,” said Fauci, “but I think they are aware enough and want to protect their players and protect the staff that they will do the right thing.”
.
