The first baseball player has tested positive for the coronavirus, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.
Passan reported the player is a Yankees minor-leaguer, and that he was quarantined Friday morning.
A minor league player in the New York Yankees system has tested positive for coronavirus, sources tell ESPN. He is the first known case in baseball. He was quarantined Friday morning after saying he was running a fever.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 15, 2020
Passan later added this unnamed player was only on the minor-league side of the team's facility in Tampa. However, with how quickly the virus spreads, that does not necessarily protect those nearby from contracting or spreading it.
Since teams want to ease their major-league players back into their regular season form during spring, minor-leaguers enter just about every spring-training game, even if they are not normally in major-league camp.
The Yankees told their minor-league players to self quarantine for two weeks.
Earlier this week, Yankees players voted unanimously to remain in Tampa and work out during the hiatus.
The majority of Pirates players are staying in Bradenton, Fla. during the shutdown as well, but according to Marly Rivera, also of ESPN, the league may be shutting down organized workouts.
A player told me they’ve been informed that teams will be ending organized workouts, but they can still work out individually.
— Marly Rivera (@MarlyRiveraESPN) March 15, 2020
The Pirates have not been to Tampa since Feb. 24. The Yankees played the Pirates in Bradenton on Mar. 7. The Yankees also played the Blue Jays on Mar. 10, who then played the Pirates on Mar. 12. That was the Pirates' final game before the league suspended spring training and delayed the start of the regular season.
