Charlie Riedel / Associated Press
MLB and MLBPA announced in a joint statement on Friday that the latest round of COVID-19 testing yielded six new positive results:
MLB Communications @ @MLB_PR
@MLB and @MLB_PLAYERS jointly announced today the latest test results under MLB’s COVID-19 Health Test and Monitoring Plan. https://t.co/5uuWF3ydfD
A total of 10,548 samples were collected and analyzed, and only 0.05 percent of the samples tested positive for the coronavirus. Of the positive tests, five were from players and one from a staff member.
Taking into account the previous tests during the monitoring phase, 23 of the 17,949 samples collected have been positive for COVID-19, which is a rate of 0.1 percent.
MLB and MLBPA did not disclose the names of the players who tested positive in the last round of testing, but most of those who tested positive previously have publicly presented themselves or given their teams permission to announce their status.
Some of the most notable players who have tested positive for COVID-19 thus far are Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman, Chicago White Sox third baseman Yoan Moncada, Colorado Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon, Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez, Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen, New York Yankees second baseman DJ LeMahieu and Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Austin Meadows.
Players testing positive for COVID-19 must produce two consecutive negative tests before they are allowed to join their teams.
MLB teams have been preparing for the start of the 2020 regular season for the past two weeks by participating in Spring 2.0 training at their respective stadiums. The 2020 season was supposed to start in March, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was delayed and is now slated to start on July 23.
Several players have chosen to exit the 2020 MLB season due to concerns about COVID-19, including San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey, Dodgers pitcher David Price, Braves outfielder Nick Markakis and Washington Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman.
Many of the players who tested positive for COVID-19 had already recovered and joined their teams, but those who tested positive more recently could be in danger of missing the start of the season.
The regular season will begin on July 23 with the Yankees-Nationals and Giants-Dodgers, and the other 26 teams will play their first games the following day.
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