Blue Jays shut Florida camp, player shows virus symptoms

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Blue Jays shut Florida camp, player shows virus symptoms

Associated Press | Friday, June 19, 2020 5:52 p.m.

FILE - In this Saturday, March 6, 2010 file photo, The Cincinnati Reds play the Cleveland Indians in a spring training baseball game at Goodyear Ball Park in Goodyear, Ariz. Putting all 30 teams in the Phoenix area this season and playing in empty ballparks was among the ideas discussed Monday, April 6, 2020 during a call among five top officials from MLB and the players’ association that was led by Commissioner Rob Manfred, people familiar with the discussion told The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Mark Duncan, File)

DUNEDIN, Fla. — The Toronto Blue Jays shut down their spring training complex Friday after a player presented symptoms consistent with covid-19, the second big league team to close their Florida camp because of the coronavirus.

The Blue Jays’ announcement came hours after the Philadelphia Phillies shuttered their site because five players and three staff members tested positive for the virus. The Phillies’ camp in Clearwater is about five miles from Toronto’s complex.

The Blue Jays said personnel at their camp have undergone testing. The club said it was following protocols established by its medical team and MLB.

Philadelphia and Toronto said their camps were closed indefinitely.

MLB players and owners are trying to reach a deal to start the season amid the pandemic, including health protocols. Some players recently had been working out at spring training sites while practicing social distancing.

The sides had hoped to have players begin testing Tuesday and begin a second round of spring training June 26. Most teams likely would hold those workouts at their home ballparks, rather than at their spring camps in Florida and Arizona.

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