Updating today’s bizarre situation earlier with some of the Cubs’ tests not returning in time for the first half of training today, meaning David Ross and five other people pulled out because they weren’t sure they were authorized. It was also notable that David Ross’s message expressly warned that it did not necessarily mean anything wrong.
Now we know why he said it that way, and we know more about the evidence itself. First, this is why only a portion of the Cubs’ testing was delayed:
#Cubs Hottovy – My understanding of the pending tests means that those tests were in a batch where there was a positive test (s), so they should all be rerun. HOWEVER, the batch is a test mix of all equipment.
– Taylor McGregor (@Taylor_McGregor) July 13, 2020
That makes sense. Using this type of batch processing is one way to speed up testing and make it more efficient. They test together in large groups, as they expect most tests to be negative, and if they are all negative, you’re ready to go. If there is a positive result in a group, then you should do specific tests only for that particular group.
Regarding the results, five out of six became clear:
The Cubs received five negatives for the six Level 1 people who skipped today’s training as a precaution while awaiting the results of the COVID-19 test. The sixth pending test, which does not involve a player or manager David Ross, was compromised and requires a redo.
– Patrick Mooney (@PJ_Mooney) July 13, 2020
So the bottom line here so far is that all players are still negative, and the only test pending doesn’t necessarily mean it’s positive. The delay wasn’t too far from the limits of what the league is supposed to do (48 hours) either, but you can see how this type of delay would cause big problems during the season: you could have groups of players who have to sit down one day. while they wait for the results of a new group check (so they don’t show up and risk infecting others without knowing the results of their last test).
