The Washington Nationals and Houston Astros have canceled their team’s training scheduled for Monday, citing the safety of their players as both clubs await the results of the COVID-19 tests last Friday.
Nationals president and general manager Mike Rizzo announced the current decision of the World Series champions and asked Major League Baseball to “work quickly to resolve problems with their process and their laboratory.”
Astros general manager James Click also emphasized his team’s priority on player health and safety, but said the AL defending champions are “optimistic that this process will be resolved and we will be back in the field and ready to compete for a championship soon. “
Rizzo said that all the Nationals players and staff were evaluated Friday, but have not received the results. He also said that without timely test results, “it is not safe for us to continue summer camp,” and suggested that the upcoming 2020 season is “at risk.”
“Per MLB protocol, all players and staff were screened for Covid-19 on Friday, July 3. Seventy-two hours later, we have yet to receive the results of those tests,” Rizzo said in a statement Monday by the morning. “We cannot make our players and staff work at risk. Therefore, we have canceled our team’s training scheduled for this morning. We will not sacrifice the health and safety of our players, staff and their families. Without accurate testing and timely is simply not safe for us to continue with Summer Camp. Major League Baseball needs to work quickly to resolve issues with their process and their lab. Otherwise Summer Camp and the 2020 season are at risk. “
The Astros announced that they will make another announcement later Monday regarding their plans for Tuesday’s training.
“The safety of our players and staff remains our top priority at the Astros,” Click said in his statement. “The team is still awaiting the results of the COVID-19 tests taken on Friday. Due to the delay in receiving these results, along with the contagious nature of the virus, we felt it was prudent to cancel today’s training at Minute Maid Park and the University of Houston Players and staff continue to fully participate in assessment and evaluation protocols as we await these results Despite these delays over the holiday weekend, we are optimistic that this process will be resolved and we will return to the field and go to compete for a championship soon. “
The Nationals announced Sunday that two of 60 players tested positive for the coronavirus. But according to manager Dave Martinez, those two players took their exams last Wednesday, before showing up in National Park for summer camp.
Washington reliever Sean Doolittle also spoke Sunday, regretting that he did not retrieve his COVID-19 test results and imploring MLB to “clean this up.”
Doolittle said he is still debating whether to play this season, weighing safety and physical and mental health concerns.
.
