Due to COVID-19 positives within the Giants organization, the games scheduled for Friday and Saturday against the Padres had to be postponed immediately. MLB is currently undecided on whether the series will resume on Sunday.
Some suggest the positive test that halted the series might have been a false alarm. According to USA Today, a Giants player who initially tested positive on Friday saw a negative result the following day. The team has not disclosed who the player is.
Currently, no other members of the Giants team stationed in San Diego have contracted the virus. This follows a streak of negative tests that dates back to the start of their summer camp in July.
In a Saturday statement, the Giants confirmed they were notified of a positive COVID-19 case on Friday. Consequently, the team has mandated that everyone stay isolated in their San Diego hotel rooms to adhere to health guidelines. The organization is currently conducting contact tracing and is in the process of re-testing every team member traveling for this series.
With the Friday and Saturday games postponed, MLB hasn't yet determined how the Giants and Padres will make up the lost matchups. One possibility is scheduling doubleheaders at Oracle Park during the final regular-season weekend, though the league might also consider using T-Mobile Park in Seattle as a neutral venue.
The St. Louis Cardinals and Miami Marlins dealt with similar COVID-19 clusters earlier in the year. Both teams are now pushing to cram as many games as possible into the final two weeks of the season.
If the teams get the green light to return, a Sunday doubleheader at Petco Park could happen. This would be a strategic move to avoid a congested schedule of doubleheaders during the final weekend, especially since they already have a three-game set planned at Oracle Park.