Yankees GM Brian Cashman spoke with several reporters on Sunday to discuss a few topics, with the minor leaguer that tested postive for coronavirus at the forefront.
It was revealed on Sunday that a Yankees minor leaguer that hasn't been named yet tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday. Cashman said the player was immediately quarantined, and that's where he remains. After learning of the positive test, the Yankees' minor league facility was shut down at 11 a.m., per The New York Times' James Wagner.
In turn, Cashman added that the minor league facility has been shut down through March 25, and players will be getting food sent to their rooms. Also, minor league players and staff are self-quarantining themselves, while Cashman said just one coronavirus test was administered.
MLB released a memo on Sunday strongly encouraging players to adopt better "social distancing" practices, and that meant banning all group workouts at the team's facilities. Still, Cashman said the facility's gym and training rooms are both open for the players, which is in MLB's current guidelines.
But Cashman is well aware that what MLB wants to do with players and staff at camp right now can change quickly. There is a conference call set for Monday between the commissioner's office and all the clubs to relay the latest info, and it could mean that everyone gets sent home -- of course, if it's safe enough to do so.
Cashman said that he believes players will simply want to return to their families and await the time for it to be safe to resume baseball activities again. The amount of players is unknown to Cashman or anyone frankly, but MLB Network's Jon Heyman tweeted that the team is expecting a "skeleton crew" very soon.
It's an ever-changing situation and one that no one can anticipate what will happen next. But taking the right precautions, like deep cleaning the minor and major league facilities for the Yankees, is the best thing teams can do right now.
