Play Ball! St. Louis Cardinals End 16-Day Coronavirus Postponement

The St. Louis Cardinals are set to finally hit the field Saturday after more than two weeks off because of a coronavirus outbreak within the clubhouse.

Fourteen games were postponed as at least 10 Cardinals players and eight staff members tested positive for the coronavirus. St. Louis is scheduled to play the Chicago White Sox in a doubleheader Saturday.

The series between the Cardinals and White Sox was supposed to start Friday, but the contest was postponed because St. Louis had another positive test.

The Cardinals last played a game on July 29 when they were defeated by the Minnesota Twins. St. Louis had been expected to resume its schedule Aug. 7, but two more positive tests delayed the team’s restart by one more week.

St. Louis has played only five games this season. The Miami Marlins, who missed a week of games because at least 18 players tested positive for the coronavirus, have played 12 games. Every other MLB team has played no fewer than 14 games.

The league updated its safety protocols in the wake of so many games being postponed.

It’s all but certain the Cardinals won’t complete their 60-game schedule. The regular season concludes Sept. 27.

The Cardinals don’t have another scheduled off-day until Sep. 3. St. Louis is expected to play 23 games over a 19-day span.

MLB and the players’ union announced Friday two players in the entire league tested positive for the coronavirus in the last week.