Our Noticias, 7/31/20: Too much positivity; José Day; blackness in baseball

Positive test streak extended

The Marlins have been off the field this entire week, confined to a Philadelphia hotel, and there’s still no definitive plan to resume their season. That’s because each of the past five days, new players in their travel party have tested positive for COVID-19. The group continues to be tested daily with more results due on Friday morning.

Fish Stripes is closely following the club’s efforts to replace 17 unavailable players, all of whom will eventually need to be placed on the injured list. The Marlins have made three waiver claims and three free agent signings while adding organizational catcher Julian León to their player pool. Outfielders Lewis Brinson and Matt Joyce could be coming off the IL and several 40-man roster players training in Jupiter are in line for call-ups, but expect even more additions, Jon Heyman reports.

Heyman also notes that the Marlins pitching staff is severely compromised by the virus. That’s particularly painful to hear—most of those individuals are at the beginning of their major league careers. They will be losing an opportunity to prove that they belong, and it would be even more heartbreaking if long-term effects of the infection prevent them from reaching their full potential.

On Thursday, shortstop Miguel Rojas—who is reportedly one of the players with COVID-19—expressed his appreciation for all the well wishes he’s received.

On Swings and Mishes, Craig Mish describes what it’s been like to cover this stressful situation.

José Day

Extraordinary Marlins right-hander José Fernández would have been turning 28 years old on Friday. A two-time All-Star, he was on a Baseball Hall of Fame trajectory before perishing in a boating accident in 2016.

During his four major league seasons, Fernández was virtually invincible when on the mound at Marlins Park. The franchise has been never had another phenomenon quite like “José Day.”

With that in mind, I found full-length local television broadcasts from almost every start he made in Little Havana. That should keep you occupied until the 2020 Marlins get the green light to return to action.

Walk-off links

• The Marlins enter July 31 with 7.1% playoff odds, according to FanGraphs. FG writer Jay Jaffe is critical of how slow Major League Baseball was to react to the team’s COVID outbreak.
• Daniel Álvarez Montes of El Extrabase joins the Fish Across The Pond podcast for a wide-ranging conversation.
• Outfielder JJ Bleday is the top Marlins prospect to target in dynasty fantasy baseball leagues, according to Prospects Live, followed closely by shortstop Jazz Chisholm. Twenty total Marlins prospects made their Top 500 list.
• Going Dutch has a two-part conversation with former Marlins outfielder Preston Wilson about the black experience in America.
• Gar Ryness AKA “Batting Stance Guy” is here to put a smile on your face.