Phillies outfielder Andrew McCutchen helped reveal the dysfunction within Major League Baseball’s testing, protocols, and notification system.
After the Phillies and Yankees’ game on Tuesday night was postponed for a second-consecutive day after the Miami Marlins’ coronavirus outbreak inside the Philadelphia visiting clubhouse over the weekend.
But McCutchen — and likely other members of the Phillies and Yankees — didn’t find out from their teams or Major League Baseball.
“I come on Twitter to find out if we are playing or not,” McCutchen wrote on Twitter. “I don’t wait for a text because media knows the answer before us.”
It remains to be seen if he and his Phillies teammates received their coronavirus test results in a timely manner, but multiple reports have indicated that no positives came back.
That, at least, is good news. It’s important to note that the incubation period for the coronavirus, according to the CDC, is up to 14 days. So the Phillies aren’t necessarily in the clear, either.
However, what does it say about the league’s system and protocols that members of the media are finding out the players’ plans and future before the players themselves?
It’s becoming obvious that the league is not putting its players — who are risking their health and safety — first, which is abundantly clear after the Marlins are now up to an estimated 17 members having tested positive for COVID-19.
Under such sentiments, it wouldn’t be surprising if more players decide to opt out as uncertainty surrounding the season remains following Miami’s outbreak in Philadelphia.
Per multiple reports, the Phillies will have another day of drive-thru testing at Citizens Bank Park before being cleared to travel to New York for a now-two-game series against the Yankees.
