Washington Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo announced on Wednesday that a player tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss Thursday’s opener, as well as an additional four players who were identified as close contacts with the player and must quarantine. One staff member was included in the close contact group.
Just 33 players tested positive in Spring Training through both intake and monitoring testing; two players and two staff members among MLB’s 30 teams tested positive in the most recent report issued by MLB. The Nationals made it through intake and monitoring testing with no positive COVID-19 tests.
The Nationals will be a few players short in the 2021 opener against the Mets, in which Max Scherzer will face off against Jacob deGrom.
MLB on Monday announced that distancing protocols will be relaxed for teams that reach an 85% vaccination rate among Tier 1 staff.
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