Marlins first MLB team hit by virus

Source reports 11 players, two staffers positive

MIAMI — The Miami Marlins scrambled for roster replacements as they coped with a coronavirus outbreak. The New York Yankees had an unscheduled day off in Philadelphia while the home team underwent COVID-19 tests. The Baltimore Orioles were flying home from Miami without playing a game. The Chicago White Sox manager was sidelined by a cough.

And Washington Nationals manager Dave Martinez summed up the situation in a season barely underway.

“I’m going to be honest with you: I’m scared,” Martinez said.

Two major league games scheduled for Monday night were postponed after more than a dozen Marlins players and staff members tested positive for COVID-19 in an outbreak that stranded the team in Philadelphia.

The Marlins’ home opener against Baltimore was called off, as was the Yankees’ game at Philadelphia. The Yankees would have been in the same clubhouse the Marlins used last weekend.

Nine Marlins players on the 30-man roster, two taxi squad players and two staff members tested positive, a person familiar with the sit

uation told The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity because the results hadn’t been publicly disclosed.

The Yankees are staying in Philadelphia and have their own clubhouse staff with the team there, the person said. The Marlins postponed their flight home Sunday night after their series finale against the Phillies.

The Orioles planned to return to Baltimore from Miami on Monday night, an

indication their scheduled game Tuesday against the Marlins won’t take place at Marlins Park.

Meanwhile, White Sox manager Rick Renteria will be kept away from the team after experiencing a “slight cough and nasal congestion,” general manager

Rick Hahn said. Tests were planned.

The Marlins’ outbreak was the talk of baseball, and the Nationals’ Martinez choked on his words as he discussed the situation. Martinez missed time last season because of a heart condition, and the Nationals are

scheduled to play in Miami this weekend.

“My level of concern went from about an eight to a 12. I mean this thing really hits home now,” Martinez said. “I got guys in our clubhouse that are really concerned, as well.”

Coming just days into the 60-game season, the Marlins’ outbreak raised anew questions about MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s plan for navigating the pandemic.

“Now we REALLY get to see if MLB is going to put players health first,” tweeted Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher

David Price, who opted out of playing this season. “Remember when Manfred said players health was PARAMOUNT?! Part of the reason I’m at home right now is because players health wasn’t being put first. I can see that hasn’t changed.”

Dr. Andrew Morris, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Toronto, said the Marlins’ outbreak isn’t a surprise because Manfred’s plan was seriously flawed.

“Baseball is in huge trouble,” Morris said. “It makes me wonder if they are listening to the advice of experts

or whether their experts are giving them good advice. This was not a plan anyone who knows what they are talking about would have conceived. It’s playing out like it was supposed to play out.”

The Marlins placed infielder Garrett Cooper, outfielder Harold Ramirez and right-hander Jose Urena on the injured list. They claimed right-hander Justin Shafer and left-hander Josh Smith off waivers from Cincinnati, and will likely rely heavily on reinforcements from their training camp in Jupiter, Florida.