The New York Yankees are on lockdown instead of playing a game against the Philadelphia Phillies tonight. After 14 Miami Marlins tested positive for the Coronavirus, the Yankees Phillies game was canceled tonight or maybe postponed is more correct. In a short season of 57 games left and only five days off, it will be challenging to reschedule games.
All the Yankees equipment was already at Citizen’s Park, but hasn’t been taken into the visitors clubhouse at the Phillies visitor clubhouse was being fumigated after being inhabited by the infected Marlins.
According to sources, the New York Yankees stayed in lockdown at their team hotel. During the day, the MLB and New York Yankees announced that the game tonight was canceled or postponed. It’s a good thing that the visiting clubhouse staff was being tested and quarantined they didn’t unpack the Yankees equipment.
MLB didn’t offer information on the status of the Yankees’ Tuesday night game against the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. It wasn’t clear if the clubs would play a doubleheader or one game or no games. Obviously, the plan would be tied to the Phillies’ test results. Another option would be to play back to back doubleheaders at Yankee Stadium. But this would be reliant on negative Phillie’s tests that should be available late last night or early tomorrow.
The Yankees were still at the team hotel at 5:30 p.m. yesterday, so it was highly likely their travel plans were contingent on the Phillies’ test results. According to NBC Sports Philadelphia, the Yankees called the Phillies on Sunday, looking to shift Monday’s game to Yankee Stadium, but the discussion didn’t result in a move.
After a conference call by MLB and the owners,, it was decided that the season would not pause or be canceled from this one unfortunate incident with the coronavirus. MLB knew that this might happen but didn’t expect that it would occur this early in the short 60 game season.
J.A. Happ was slated to make his season debut Monday night, and Cole’s start Tuesday evening would be his second of the year. If a game is played Tuesday, Happ could start it, and that would move Cole to Wednesday night’s game against the Phillies in the Yankees’ home opener. But in this season of unknowns, there is no guaranteed way forward that is a surety.
Of course, since the Yankees and Phillies are playing two games in The Bronx on Wednesday and Thursday already, they could stage a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium to make up for Monday’s postponement. If Tuesday night’s game isn’t played, it wouldn’t be likely to play back-to-back doubleheaders at the Stadium.
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