WASHINGTON, DC – SEPTEMBER 27: The Washington Nationals logo on the scoreboard after a baseball game against the New York Mets at Nationals Park on September 27, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
Some rough news has arrived for the Washington Nationals leading up to Opening Day, as the club has announced that five players will miss the action after a positive COVID-19 test.
While Washington Nationals fans are jacked up for Opening Day to arrive, some not-so-great news has arrived to lower the excitement. On Wednesday, the club has announced that due to a positive COVID-19 test, the club will be without five players for the first game of the season.
Indeed, manager Mike Rizzo revealed on Wednesday that one player has tested positive for the coronavirus. Unfortunately, four players were also considered close contacts, which will sideline them for Opening Day as well.
The Nationals will be without five players for Opening Day due to a positive COVID-19 test
The Nationals and Mets are all set to face off on Thursday, with Max Scherzer taking the bump for Washington and Jacob deGrom getting the start for New York. The five players sidelined for the Nationals have yet to be revealed.
Unfortunately for the 2019 World Series champs, this is the second year in a row where they’ve had a coronavirus scare leading up to the first pitch. Hours before Opening Day in 2020, it was announced that superstar slugger Juan Soto had tested positive. That happened in July. Fast forward around eight months later and the club has once again been dealt some adversity.
For Major League Baseball as a whole, this is a reminder that while the positive tests were down throughout spring training, there’s still plenty of concern when it comes to the pandemic and things spreading. As for the Nationals, they’ll now have to wait for those five players to follow the protocols and hopefully get back on the field as soon as possible.