Braves Reportedly Among MLB Teams Participating in Landmark COVID-19 Study
By Mark Powell
MLB is participating in an unprecedented COVID-19 study, which will test over 10,000 employees across all 30 teams. The Atlanta Braves are reportedly among the teams which will have their employees tested.
By gaining a nationwide sample, which is the study's main goal, Stanford University, USC and the Sports Medicine Research and Testing Laboratory will be able to tell just how wide COVID-19 has spread, or at least that's the goal.
MLB employees to be subjects of country's largest COVID-19 antibody study https://t.co/eRzGSSDSVf
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) April 15, 2020
"This will be the very first of those. Why MLB versus other employers? I've reached out to others, but MLB moved by far the fastest. They've been enormously cooperative and flexible. We're trying to set up a scientific study that would normally take years to set up, and it's going to be a matter of weeks," Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a professor of medicine at Stanford University, told ESPN.
The Braves, along with the rest of baseball, have opted to be part of the solution, rather than an extension of the problem. By volunteering for such a cause, we can hopefully take one step closer towards the return of our national pastime.
Those running the study made sure to note that, by MLB participating, it does not expedite the sport’s return.
— Post-Gazette Sports (@PGSportsNow) April 15, 2020
“They jumped in for public health policy. That was their intention and their only intention.”
From: @JMackeyPG ⬇️https://t.co/dDNtpvuvT7
At the very least, such a study is a step in the right direction.