AROUND THE HORN
Cubs: Cubs manager David Ross and president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer have tested positive for COVID-19. A spokesman for the team said Ross and Hoyer are feeling fine and quarantining. Both of them are vaccinated. Ross and Hoyer likely will have to stay away from the team for at least 10 days, though Major League Baseball has made exceptions for individuals cleared by its medical experts if determined to be not infectious. Bench coach Andy Green will run the team while Ross is away. Green said before Friday’s game that Ross’ close contacts had been tested and there were no other positive COVID-19 tests within the clubhouse. “So our expectation is that everybody on our roster’s ready to go and ready to play today,” he said. The Cubs are among a handful of big league teams that have failed to reach the 85% vaccination threshold required for the relaxation of MLB’s COVID-19 protocols. Green said the team is planning to make some changes in light of the pair of positive tests. He also said there were no conversations about canceling Friday’s game. “We take COVID incredibly seriously around here,” Green said. “We’re going to do a number of things and not just test his close contacts. We’re going to try to reduce our time in the clubhouse over the coming week, to try to mitigate as much as humanly possible the spread of it.”
Rays: Rays rookie shortstop Wander Franco was out of Friday night’s lineup against Minnesota, one day after leaving a game early with a headache. Rays manager Kevin Cash said Franco underwent tests, which were negative, and that anticipates the 20-year old will be back in the lineup “within a game or two” as long as he continues to improve.
Yankees: Gleyber Torres was activated from the injured list Friday by the Yankees after missing almost a month with a sprained left thumb. Torres is batting .253 with six homers and 42 RBIs in 99 games. He appeared to be heating up when he was injured while stealing second base against the Mariners on Aug. 9. The 24-year-old shortstop hit .393 with five RBIs and four doubles in 28 at-bats in eight August games, a span in which the Yankees went 6-2. “I know he’s real eager to get back and contribute,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said before Torres batted seventh in the series opener against the Orioles. “I felt he was playing some of his best baseball in those couple weeks before going to the IL.” The Yankees went 16-6 in Torres’ absence to surge from 2 games in back of the American League’s second wild-card spot to 1 games ahead of the Red Sox in the race for the first wild card.
Red Sox: The Red Sox placed outfielder Jarren Duran on the COVID-19related injured list Friday, bringing the team’s total to nine players added to the list in a span of a week. The Red Sox announced the move before Friday night’s home game against the Indians. Manager Alex Cora said earlier Friday that Duran wasn’t feeling well and would not be with the team as he underwent testing. The club announced a few hours later that Duran had been added to the list, which has been growing since the Red Sox placed infielders Kiké Hernández and Christian Arroyo on the injured list on Aug. 27. Cora said Hernández has been feeling better, but was unlikely to return to the lineup this weekend.