Yankees Catcher Gary Sanchez to Be Seen by Doctor Due to Fever
The New York Yankees are already riddled with injuries to key members of the team, including Aaron Judge and Luis Severino. Now, catcher Gary Sanchez, already sidelined because of a back injury, was battling a fever on Tuesday and a team spokesman said Sanchez will see a doctor. The spokesman, however, did not say whether Sanchez would be tested for coronavirus.
The virus has been wreaking havoc throughout the sports world. Several leagues and individual players are already taking steps to help deal with the recent outbreak.
MLB joins NBA, NHL, and MLS in banning media from locker rooms
On Tuesday, Major League Baseball joined forces with three other major US sports leagues to keep media and other non-essential personnel out of teams’ locker rooms due to the coronavirus scare.
MLB, along with the NBA, NHL, and MLS, issued the following joint statement on Monday:
“After consultation with infectious disease and public health experts, and given the issues that can be associated with close contact in pre- and post-game settings, all team locker rooms, and clubhouses will be open only to players and essential employees of teams and team facilities until further notice. Media access will be maintained in designated locations outside of the locker room and clubhouse setting.”
For now, MLB’s plan is to have all media address the players outside the clubhouse. Media has also been asked to adopt the Centers for Disease Control’s recommendation of remaining at least six feet away from the players.
Players are taking their own coronavirus precautions
Until coronavirus gets under control, some players, including Zach Britton a teammate of Gary Sanchez, will change his routine of signing autographs at the ballpark.
“If they get mad at me for that, they get mad at me for it,” Britton said. “But there are things more important. I have little children. I don’t want somebody giving the virus to me and then I give it to my kids.
“And it’s not just fans giving it to players. What if a player has it and gives it to a little kid? Until the virus gets under control, it makes sense to be cautious about it.”
Players in other leagues, such as C.J. McCollum of the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers, have already adopted the no-autograph policy until further notice.
Will sports go on if coronavirus continues to spread?
It remains to be seen what the next step would be when it comes to coronavirus at sporting events. There has been some talk in the NBA about having to play games without fans, something Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James said he wouldn’t do.
The NHL’s San Jose Sharks may be forced to play without fans as Santa Clara County in California issued a cancellation of mass gatherings over 1,000 people, in light of “significantly increasing rates of COVID-19 in Santa Clara County,” according to the Emergency Operations Center and Public Health Department.
Three Sharks home games scheduled for the rest of the month will be affected, according to the Mercury News.
