No, this isn’t an April Fool’s joke. The New York Mets’ Opening Day clash against the Washington Nationals scheduled for Thursday night was postponed due to COVID protocols.
It has already been determined that the game will not be made up on Friday, meaning the earliest the two teams will play is on Saturday.
On Wednesday, it was reported that a Nationals player tested positive for the virus with four others forced to miss to 2021 season opener due to contact tracing.
“We’re unable to disclose any additional information about who tested positive,” Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said at the time. “But we are following MLB protocols and CDC protocols and working closely with the league to determine our next steps. There’ll be a lot of balls in the air until then.”
It puts an obvious damper on what is usually one of the best days in sports — and the Mets had plenty to celebrate on Thursday.
Just hours before the news came down of the postponement, New York inked superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor to a 10-year contract extension at the 11th hour of negotiations as the 27-year-old said he would not entertain talks during the regular season.
“Excitement… right down the drain,” Mets starting pitcher Marcus Stroman — who is projected to start the team’s second game of the season — wrote on Twitter.
Two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom was set to face off against a three-time Cy Young Award winner, Max Scherzer in a star-studded opener.
No makeup information has been disclosed, but the Mets will spend Thursday working out at Nationals Park in hopes of staying sharp during an unexpected off day.
The Mets and Nationals were scheduled to play each other 19 times this season, meaning there should be ample opportunities to properly make up Opening Day, if not the other games of this first series.
