This morning Major League
Baseball was hit with another blow. The St. Louis Cardinals had two players
test positive for COVID-19 with an immediate fallout of postponement of action
against the Milwaukee Brewers. We’re playing through a pandemic here however,
so what really was the plan?
When Rob Manfred and the owners
finally came to agreement on economics it appeared, they also had sorted out
safety protocols. What it seems they didn’t have ironed out was the logistics
surrounding continuation of play. It’s one thing to suggest that a season be
decided on winning percentage if not all teams get 60 games in. That can’t
happen if some only play 30 or 40 games.
These teams are tested every
other day, or potentially daily in some instances. Rapid tests are taken at
will, and in the case of the Nationals Juan Soto, relatively indicative of what
the saliva tests may show. What has to be determined, and seems like it remains
up in the air, is what constitutes an outbreak and what doesn’t.
Last week the Miami Marlins
decided via group text to play through a game despite four players testing
positive. They allowed the virus to run rampant within their clubhouse and now
have over 60% of their 30-man active roster dealing with positive results.
Something like that isn’t going to be overcome by a 3-man taxi squad, and very
clearly isn’t as easy as calling on players from the alternate site either.
On the other hand, the St. Louis
Cardinals had just two players test positive following their departure from
Minnesota on Wednesday night. To postpone action against the Milwaukee Brewers
on Friday seems to negate the planning MLB put in place. The 3-man taxi squad
was not designed to account for injury, that’s why there’s an additional 30
players at the alternate site. What the taxi squad was talked about doing was
providing an immediate replacement should someone need to go on the COVID-related
IL.
Each team has up to three players
traveling with them to all away games. If they aren’t going to be immediately substituted
onto the active roster when a positive tests appears, then there’s little
reason for them to be subjected to travel and increase virus contraction at
all.
Since the beginning Major League
Baseball’s goal has been to play an unprecedented season amidst a global
pandemic. That’s going up against some significantly substantial odds, but if
you’re going to operate like that there has to be a level of “next man up.” Postponing
each game in which a test or two come back positive on any given day will
certainly fail to give this season a chance.
Maybe this was always going to be
the probable outcome. We still don’t have this under control across the country,
so the feasibility of baseball being doable remained a longshot anyways.
However, as unfortunate, and competitively unjust as it is, the show must go
on. Either Rob Manfred has to decide that taxi squads have a purpose to fill in
rosters (and maybe even expand that group), or even a limited number of
positives will bring the sport to its knees.
It has been a tenuous start to
this whole thing, and there won’t be much more opportunity to get it right. Step
back and get it together now, or we’ll continue to go through the motions on
something that fizzles out shortly anyways.
