ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - No major postponements, cancelations or fan restrictions have been announced by the major sports teams in St. Louis: Cardinals, Blues and BattleHawks.
There are some worries that the Cardinals March 26th season opener in Cincinnati could be impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley has declared a state of emergency in the city and Ohio Governor Mike DeWine says he will issue an order concerning mass gatherings in the state soon.
A Cardinals official tells KMOX the team is closely monitoring the situation and "has established an internal task force to develop and communicate necessary protocols should those arise."
MLB executives will reportedly discuss plans during a conference call on Friday, says ESPN's Jeff Passan.
MLB has a league-wide conference call scheduled for Friday, sources told ESPN. Considering how things in other leagues are changing seemingly by the hour, baseball’s tack could be different. One thing baseball has that others don’t: time, as opening day isn’t until March 26.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan)
March 12, 2020 The Cardinals home opener at Busch Stadium is scheduled for April 2nd.
Here is the full statement from the Cardinals to KMOX:
“We are closely monitoring the situation, and remain in regular communication with Major League Baseball officials, as well as local and regional health departments. The safety of our fans, players and staff is a high priority, and we have established an internal task force to develop and communicate necessary protocols should those arise.”
The Blues, who are in Anaheim on Wednesday night and will be back home on Friday to host San Jose, released a statement and "plan to play all Blues home games at Enterprise Center as currently scheduled."
Enterprise Center will have "additional alcohol-based hand sanitizer stations throughout the venue."
The NHL said it plans to have an update on Thursday about its next step.
National Hockey League Statement Regarding Coronavirus: https://t.co/AKrmh8ao4F pic.twitter.com/PZ7dQBbGVB
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL)
March 12, 2020 The Columbus Blue Jackets became the first NHL team to say they'll hold home games without fans in the stands. Thursday's game against Pittsburgh will be limited "to home and visiting club personnel, credentialed media and broadcast partners, essential club and arena staff and NHL officials. The games will be closed to the public."
The BattleHawks are in Tampa Bay this weekend, then return home on March 21 to host Los Angeles. The only announcements coming concerning the coronavirus outbreak is from Seattle, where this Sunday's game will take place as scheduled, but without fans in the stands. The game will still be broadcasted live.
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