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Pedro Strop, Jose Ramirez Broke COVID Rules, Held out of Spring Training
March 7, 2021
Chicago Cubs pitcher Pedro Strop is separated from the team for violating COVID-19 protocols.
Cubs manager David Ross confirmed Strop's status Sunday after a report from MLB.com's Jordan Bastian. Ross added he did not expect additional discipline for Strop as a result of the broken protocols.
Bastian reported that Strop was tagged in a now-deleted post on social media by Cleveland star Franmil Reyes, who joins Jose Ramirez in being separated from their team, per an Associated Press report.
Reyes also broke COVID protocols last season when the team resumed spring training following the virus-related shutdown.
According to the AP report, Reyes told the team that the pair went out to dinner indoors, which is a violation of the league's COVID-19 guidelines.
"They were both upfront and honest with us about what happened," Cleveland manager Terry Francona said. "We're not trying to put guys in the penalty box. We try to talk to guys almost every day. 'Hey, this is gonna happen if—it doesn't matter if you agree with it or not. These are the protocols that are in place and you have to live by it.'"
Reyes was the first player to break the COVID-19 protocols in Cleveland last season when he went to a Fourth of July party without a mask, and he "said that he understood how risky his behavior was and swore it wouldn't happen again" (h/t Mandy Bell of MLB.com).
But his message didn't carry over to the rest of the team, as Zach Plesac and Mike Clevinger were caught breaking curfew a month later.
Francona said Sunday he is hoping to learn more about when his players can return, per Bell, while Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports Chicago said Strop will quarantine "possibly a week or more" and his timeline for a return is "unclear."