Report: Cardinals-Pirates Series Postponed Amid Outbreak
The upcoming series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates, originally scheduled for Aug. 10-12, has been postponed, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.
The Cardinals have not played a game since July 29 in Minnesota, as nine players and seven staff members have tested positive for COVID-19. The outbreak has caused multiple infected team members to go to the emergency room to deal with symptoms, per Katherine Acquavella of CBS Sports.
The latest Cardinals player to test positive is outfielder Lane Thomas, according to The Athletic's Mark Saxon. Team president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said he has little idea of when the Cardinals will play next.
To help prevent future outbreaks that cause teams to be sidelined for weeks at a time, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred sent a memo to all 30 teams earlier in the week informing them of updates to the league's health and safety protocols.
Among the notable changes were the requirement of masks to be worn at all times at the ballpark (expect for players on the field), the hiring of a compliance officer for each team and significant restrictions on where players are allowed to go while on the road. As part of the restrictions, players are not allowed to meet together in hotel rooms, or gather in public areas without approval from the team's compliance officer.
The Cardinals have played just five games this season, while every other team has played at least 10 as of Sunday and some have played as many as 17. MLB passed a rule to allow scheduled doubleheaders that would play seven innings each to help enable teams to make up missed games, but it's unclear how many of the Cardinals' missed games will be able to be made up by the end of September. The last day of MLB's scheduled regular season is Sunday, Sept. 27.
