The St. Louis Cardinals already lost their weekend series against the Milwaukee Brewers due to a COVID-19 outbreak. As other clubs push forward with their seasons, the Cardinals could lose their upcoming game against the Detroit Tigers.
Hours before the Cardinals were set to face the Brewers, the first game of the series was postponed due to a positive COVID-19 test. Before long, with results showing an outbreak had occurred, the remainder of the series was wiped out.
Cardinals-Tigers game on Tuesday expected to be postponed
The bad news got even worse for the Cardinals on Sunday, with more test results determining they were the second MLB team with an outbreak of the coronavirus. With the club still stuck in Milwaukee on Monday, things don’t look promising for the upcoming schedule.
St. Louis was previously set to begin its four-game series against the Tigers on Monday, but the game was rescheduled with a doubleheader on Wednesday. While MLB hasn’t made an official ruling on Tuesday’s game, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal makes it clear they are already likely preparing for it to be canceled.
As we saw with the Marlins’ outbreak, a wave of positive COVID-19 tests can dramatically impact a team. Miami and the Philadelphia Phillies were both set to play a full schedule this past week, but fears of the virus spreading resulted in both clubs being sidelined for seven days. After last playing on July 26, both teams are finally set to return to the diamond on Tuesday.
If MLB follows the same guidelines it did with both clubs, we likely won’t see the Cardinals return to the field until Friday in the best-case scenario. If that happens, they will return for a three-game series against the Chicago Cubs.
Of course, wiping out this week’s four-game stint against the Tigers would also leave another team significantly impacted in an already shortened season. In the end, even greater uncertainty is created and more teams are at a competitive disadvantage.