Marlins, Orioles Series In Baltimore Won't Be Played; Yankees Coming To Baltimore Wednesday
BALTIMORE (WJZ) --The Baltimore Orioles series in Miami set for Monday and Tuesday was postponed after the Marlins experienced a COVID-19 outbreak over the weekend that, to this point, has seen at least 15 players test positive. But, Major League Baseball has been mum on whether or not the two teams would play in Baltimore beginning on Wednesday as scheduled.
Now, the league has spoken, releasing a statement saying that all Marlins games through Sunday have been postponed.
"Major League Baseball announced today that all games on the Miami Marlins' schedule have been postponedthrough Sunday (BAL @ MIA tonight, MIA @ BAL Wednesday and Thursday, and WSH @ MIA Friday through Sunday). Given the current circumstances, MLB believes that it is most prudent to allow the Marlins time to focus on providing care for their players and planning their Baseball Operations for a resumption early next week."
That makes it a full week's worth of games that have been postponed for the Marlins as the league attempts to contain the outbreak. Miami was scheduled to host the Washington Nationals this weekend, but ESPN's Jeff Passan reports that the Nationals took a team vote today and the players voted against making the trip to Miami.
It appears that the league has listened to the Nationals players' concerns. The league also announced that the home and home series between the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies has been postponed "out of an abundance of caution".
"As a result of these postponements, the Yankees will now play the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards on Wednesday and Thursday in order to create more scheduling flexibility later in the season. Additional rescheduling during the week of August 3rd will be announced later this week."
The Yankees were scheduled to play the Phillies on Monday and Tuesday, but both games were postponed following the Phillies weekend matchup with the Marlins. The Yankees were scheduled to host the Phillies in New York on Wednesday and Thursday, though the Phillies continue to undergo further testing.
>>WJZ has a new news app! Download it now!<<
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said Monday night that he didn't consider the Marlins outbreak to be a "nightmare" scenario.
"I don't put this in the nightmare category," Manfred said to MLB Network. "It's not a positive thing, but I don't see it as a nightmare. ... That's why we have the expanded rosters. That's why we have the pool of additional players."
The league's statement on Tuesday echoed those sentiments saying that the health and safety protocols were "designed with a challenging circumstance like the one facing the Marlins in mind." The league then reinforced that in 6,400 tests conducted since Friday among the 29 other clubs there have been no new positives among on-field personnel.
For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.
