MLB Indians send Ramirez and 'repeat offender' Reyes into isolation
The Cleveland Indians said Sunday they have sent Jose Ramirez and Franmil Reyes from pre-season training camp into isolation after admitted violations of Major League Baseball Covid-19 safety protocols.
Reyes, a Dominican outfielder, admitted getting a haircut to the team's medical staff and when asked about it also volunteered that he had eaten dinner with Ramirez, a Dominican third baseman, inside a restaurant near the team's training facility in suburban Phoenix, Arizona.
"We sent them home and we self-reported to the league," Indians manager Terry Francona said. "They have not had access to us from that time."
Last July, during pre-season workouts for a season cut short by Covid-19, Reyes was forced to quarantine after attending a party without wearing a mask.
He vowed not to commit another violation of MLB safety rules but is now a repeat offeneder.
"We spoke to both of them," Francona said. "They were both upfront and honest with us about what happened. How we deal with it, probably a little bit different. Franmil, this is kind of a repeat offender.
"We're not trying to put guys in a penalty box. We try to talk to guys almost every day that this is going to happen. It doesn't matter whether you agree with it or not, these are the protocols that are in place, and we've got to live by it."
The Indians, who haven't won the World Series since 1948, had no positive Covid-19 tests during the 2020 campaign.
"Everybody wants to get rid of their mask, and it would be nice to go sit in a restaurant," Francona said. "Those aren't the conditions we're playing under.
"Also, these guys are young and it's not normal to be cooped up. It doesn't have to be just baseball. It's everybody. It's life. But these are the rules we're playing under."