Reports Sunday evening indicated that Monday’s matchup between the Nationals and Braves had been postponed. But two people familiar with the matter said discussions about a postponement and the schedule ramifications were ongoing. Neither MLB nor the Nationals had made an official announcement by Sunday night.
“There’s been no protocol on an exact amount of full-team workouts you have to have before you can start a game,” Rizzo said earlier Sunday on a video conference call with reporters. “So in essence we could be told we’re playing tomorrow with a very, very short workout schedule before. This brings up a reminder that the position players haven’t worked out in a week and pitchers haven’t thrown any competitive pitches in that same period of time.
“It’s something that we’re taking very seriously here. We’re thinking of creative ways under the protocol and under the guidance to get these guys as ready as possible. But [not] working out a week prior to the game is going to be something we’re concerned about.”
Rizzo’s comments held a mix of good and less encouraging news.
The Nationals, whose three-game, season-opening series against the New York Mets was postponed, have had no new positives in their coronavirus tests from Thursday or Friday. But they now have 13 members of the organization in quarantine (for close contacts) or isolation (for anyone who has tested positive). Four players tested positive last week. Nine others — seven players and two staff members — are quarantining because of potential exposure. Two of those people — a player and a staff member — were added to the quarantine list this weekend because of D.C. regulations.
According to Rizzo, a “majority” of the 11 unavailable players were expected to be on the Opening Day roster. The Nationals would be without outfielder Kyle Schwarber, infielder Josh Harrison, catcher Alex Avila and left-hander Jon Lester if the club played in the coming days, according to multiple people with knowledge of the situation. They are planning to fill several roster spots with players from their alternate training site in Fredericksburg, Va. They even signed veteran catcher Jonathan Lucroy to a minor league deal Saturday night.
But Rizzo is wary about rushing his team back without a proper buildup. Each season, major league teams use six weeks of spring training to ease into action. Now, though, the Nationals will come off a long pause ahead of their opener. And that opener, of course, while still tentatively slated for 4:05 p.m. Monday at Nationals Park, has not yet been firmly set by Major League Baseball. Rizzo believed Saturday’s test results, which he did not have when he addressed reporters Sunday, would have a significant bearing on the immediate schedule.
“We want to do everything we can to nip this thing in the bud right here, right now,” Rizzo said. “So I think that’s being taken very much into consideration when we’re talking the next couple of days.”
The 2020 season began last summer with even bigger outbreaks among the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals. The Marlins had 20 positives — including players and staff — and were stuck isolating and quarantining at a hotel in Philadelphia. The Cardinals had more than a dozen positive tests that kept them sidelined for 15 days. Both teams got two workouts in before resuming their schedules.
As Rizzo noted, MLB’s 2021 protocols don’t specify how many workouts are needed before a paused team starts again. The Marlins and Cardinals are the only real (and loose) precedent. The Marlins had 13 players practice at the University of Pennsylvania, then a full workout in Baltimore, adding in replacements, before facing the Orioles at Camden Yards. The Cardinals had back-to-back days of individual workouts before driving to a doubleheader against the White Sox in Chicago.
Each case shows that decisions are made on the fly. That’s the nature of playing through a pandemic, and the Nationals’ situation won’t differ. Rizzo just hopes there is some chance to grease their arms and legs. He also felt that putting another player in quarantine this weekend could affect MLB’s thought process.
“I think that MLB will take that into consideration,” Rizzo said. “It’s another player from the 26-man roster that won’t be able to play. So if that carries any weight in their mind, that’s to be seen.”
As Rizzo spoke to reporters, the Mets finished a workout at Nationals Park. They soon headed to Philadelphia for a three-game series with the Phillies that begins Monday night. And once they were gone, the Nationals were allowed to cycle in pitchers for individual throwing sessions.
Daniel Hudson and Erick Fedde were among those who threw in a near-empty stadium. The goal was to have every active pitcher play catch, at the least, before the weekend was over. The alternate site has held daily workouts and intrasquad scrimmages that included more than 30 minor leaguers. The idea is to have everyone ready to face the Braves in a pinch.
“They want to get on the field,” Rizzo said. “They really want to get back into the routine of baseball, and they want to work out and get the blood flowing again.”
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