Rob Manfred Claims MLB Season Won't Be Canceled if an Entire Team Has to Drop Out

The latest outbreak of the coronavirus has made its way to MLB, as dozens of players and staff members throughout the league have tested positive for the disease while readying for a return to action.

Given the contagious nature of COVID-19, it's reasonable to assume that the number of positive tests will continue to rise in the coming months. This has forced fans to question what would happen to the 2020 season if a club was so ransacked by the virus that it couldn't field a competitive team.

Well, commissioner Rob Manfred recently cleared the air on this increasingly popular debate topic by saying that the upcoming campaign...wouldn't be cancelled if a club was forced to drop out.

MLB’s response if the Marlins have to drop out of the season: “This is a blow. But we soldier on. Baseball kept playing during WW2. We owe it to our fans and the country to do the same now.”

MLB’s response if the Yankees have to drop out of the season: “We tried. Shut it down.” pic.twitter.com/SkKsnKVFwi
— The D.C. Universe (@dcuniverse) June 27, 2020

Do you believe him?

The new particulars of the March 26 agreement between MLB and the players association state that Manfred has the power to terminate the season if "the number of players who are unavailable to perform services due to COVID-19 is so great that the competitive integrity of the season is undermined."

This obviously begs the question -- what is the all-important percentage or number of positive tests that would prompt Manfred to take action? Per SNY insider Andy Martino, the league has opted against tying itself to one predetermined number.

Also in here: Per sources, if an outbreak within a team forces cancellation of games and that 1 team can't finish 60 games, it's not an automatic cancellation of MLB season. https://t.co/WRUGY8olPg
— Andy Martino (@martinonyc) June 26, 2020

The new terms of the March agreement are reportedly nothing more than a "failsafe" in the case that multiple clubs are unable to field a starting lineup. In other words, Manfred and Co. are fully prepared to play it by ear.

In many ways, that's how the NBA has approached its restart operation, and most would agree that commish Adam Silver has handled things swimmingly.

We'd still prefer if Manfred provided more specifics, but it's probably better for him and the sport if he doesn't set any prearranged figures that would result in the cancellation of the 2020 season, in case he decides to backtrack on them for monetary reasons.