All eyes are on the Miami Marlins as they battle Major League Baseball’s biggest COVID-19 outbreak to date.
More than a dozen members of the organization have tested positive for the novel coronavirus in the days following Opening Day on Thursday, forcing the league to pause the team’s season through Sunday. Additionally, the New York Yankees’ two upcoming games against the Phillies have been postponed as well after Philadelphia hosted Miami at Citizens Bank Park over the weekend.
So, can the season continue? Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony Fauci offered his opinion on Tuesday’s episode of “Good Morning America.”
“You know, I don’t know,” Fauci told ABC’s George Stephanopolous. “I hope so, George, because I know that Major League Baseball — the players, the owners, the managers — have put a lot of effort into getting together and putting (together) protocols that we feel would work. It’s very unfortunate what happened with the Miami (Marlins). First of all, I’m concerned. I hope the players are alright. I heard about a dozen of them have gotten infected. and even though they’re young, vigorous and very healthy, I hope they’re OK.
“But you just have to watch this. This could put (the season) in danger. I don’t believe they need to stop, but we just need to follow this and see what happens with other teams on a day-by-day basis.”
.@ABC NEWS EXCLUSIVE: Dr. Anthony Fauci speaks to @GStephanopoulos about his response to Pres. Trump’s tweets, how states can avoid COVID-19 surges and why he is “cautiously optimistic” about a vaccine. https://t.co/JgCvhTifYS pic.twitter.com/BOcoCbyrqa
— Good Morning America (@GMA) July 28, 2020
Miami is moving to a “daily testing schedule,” Marlins CEO Derek Jeter announced Tuesday.