A total of 15 players of the Miami Marlins’ 30-man active roster tested positive for COVID-19, which is among the worst-case scenarios for MLB and the 2020 season. The Marlins played against the Phillies over the weekend, and while the latter is finishing up tests, the New York Yankees won’t be facing them tonight.
The situation is slowly getting out of control, and MLB is currently discussing several scenarios that would allow them to continue with the season but also preserving the health of the players and the other teams.
According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, one of the possibles paths that MLB could take given the situation is having both the Marlins and the Phillies quarantining for an undetermined period of time.
MLB needs to be flexible if it wants to complete season
The idea would be to ensure that most of the players that tested positive can get back into the field as soon as possible (with the proper two negative tests separated by at least 24 hours,) thus avoiding the situation of Miami having to replace 15 players of their active roster with taxi squad members.
Because the Baltimore Orioles were supposed to play against the Marlins in Miami this week, and the Yankees were going to face the Phillies in Philadelphia, the Bombers would be going up against the O’s under this scenario, playing Wednesday and Thursday.
MLB would like the Phillies and Marlins to try and make up for the missed games later in the season, if possible. The league has indicated that despite its desire for every team to play 60 games, it needs to be flexible during the pandemic.
That’s why MLB will determine the playoff spots by winning percentage. The possibility of the coronavirus effectively ending the season remains, but for now, the league is trying to navigate the situation.