Report: MLB Player's Birthday Party Believed to Be 'Spreader' Event for COVID-19

A mid-June birthday party held for an unnamed MLB player reportedly became a "spreader" event for COVID-19 in Florida.

Jon Heyman of the MLB Network reported the news Friday:

A recent surge in coronavirus cases around the United States, including a series of new single-day records in Florida, has occurred just as professional sports leagues around the country attempt to resume play with strict guidelines because of the pandemic.

MLB announced it's planning to start its 2020 season July 23-24, with games being held at home stadiums around the U.S. rather than one or two "bubble" cities like the NBA and NHL are going to utilize.

The league is also making a concerted effort to limit contact between players amid an age of social distancing and protective face coverings, per Jayson Stark of The Athletic:

"All hitters will now have to bring their own pine-tar rags, bat donuts and other equipment to and from the on-deck circle—and will have to retrieve their own caps, gloves and sunglasses from the dugout if an inning ends with them on base or batting. All pitchers will now have to bring their own rosin bag to the mound and use only their own baseballs for bullpen sessions. And baseballs used in batting practice can be used only that day, then need to be cleaned and sanitized, and not be re-used for at least five days. So one thing is clear: Teams are going to have to have thousands of baseballs in the old storage closet."

MLB is going to attempt a shortened 60-game regular season followed by a traditional postseason, with five playoff teams from each league vying to win the World Series.

Commissioner Rob Manfred told Bob Nightengale of USA Today the league understands being able to follow through with those plans could be difficult given the rising COVID-19 numbers.

"We just weren't going to be able to play more than 60 games at that point with everything being shut down," Manfred said about the latter stages of negotiations with the Players Association. "The reality is that we're going to be lucky if we [get] 60 games now given the course of the virus."

It's going to take strict adherence to guidelines, including the elimination of large-scale gatherings like birthday parties, for players to avoid spreading the coronavirus throughout the clubhouse.

The path to a finished 2020 season is already narrow with still three weeks until Opening Day.

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Bleacher Report's David Gardner interviews athletes and other sports figures for the podcast How to Survive Without Sports.