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Cardinals vs. Pirates Series Postponed Amid STL's COVID-19 Outbreak
August 9, 2020
The three-game National League Central series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates scheduled for Monday through Wednesday has been postponed.
The Cardinals are dealing with a COVID-19 outbreak within the team and have not played since a July 29 loss to the Minnesota Twins. Their series against the Milwaukee Brewers, Detroit Tigers and Chicago Cubs were already postponed prior to this news.
Heyman reported the latest round of COVID-19 tests within the Cardinals is expected to produce at least one more positive result. ESPN's Jesse Rogers added more details:
On Saturday, Mark Saxon of The Athletic reported players were told the team would not get together for at least three to five days.
"We think we're isolating the individual that may be connected to this, so there is a small level of confidence that we may sort of know where this all began through contact tracing," president of baseball operations John Mozeliak previously told Saxon.
Derrick S. Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch noted manager Mike Shildt went on KMOX/1120 AM and said some of those who tested positive went to the emergency room with their symptoms, although none have remained hospitalized.
This latest news will make it even more difficult for St. Louis to finish its season.
Games against the Cubs, Brewers and Pirates in particular figure to have a heavy bearing on the NL Central race with only 60 games on the schedule, making them all the more important in the race for the playoffs.
However, Bob Nightengale of USA Today pointed out the Cardinals have just 46 days to play their remaining 55 games following the latest postponement. That could mean a grueling finish for the team even with doubleheaders adjusted to seven innings this year.