Gleyber Torres Is The Eighth Yankee To Test Positive For COVID-19

The New York Yankees continue to deal with a coronavirus outbreak in the team. Shortstop Gleyber Torres is the latest to test positive for the coronavirus on the team.

The team announced that the shortstop had been placed on the COVID-19 list before their loss to the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday. “Before tonight’s game, the Yankees placed INF Gleyber Torres on the COVID IL and recalled INF/OF Miguel Andújar from Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes/Barre,” the team announced on Twitter.

Torres is the eighth Yankee to test positive and the first player to do so. The previous seven positive coronavirus cases were all coaching and support staff, including pitching coach Matt Blake, third-base coach Phil Nevin and first-base coach Reggie Willits. Torres and all the staff that tested positive are all fully vaccinated.

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said the team is dealing with an “aggressive coronavirus strain.”

“The variant that we’re dealing with has been pretty aggressive, but thankfully, the information I’ve been provided is the benefit that we have been vaccinated in most cases has really taken root,” Cashman said ahead of the Yankees’ series finale versus the Rays on Thursday. “I take a lot of great comfort that that’s the purpose of the vaccine, to protect. And it appears to be doing that, despite still having the ability to spread, which we were educated with that prior to the vaccination.”

Following health and safety protocols for the 2021 regular season, any player who tests positive must isolate for a minimum of 10 days, including those who are fully vaccinated. An MLB-MLBPA joint committee can clear players to come off the 10-day COVID IL earlier if they are asymptomatic and have negative PCR tests.

Cashman was encouraged that no new positive tests were returned on Thursday. It marked the first day with no new positive tests. “In terms of the return testing, this was the first day I believe that we’ve had complete negative, which is good,” Cashman said. “That gives you a little optimism, it doesn’t guarantee anything, that maybe it’s slowing down in terms of the exposure.