Source: Royals’ Bubba Starling did not have COVID. And his IL stint could end very soon
Kansas City Royals outfielder and former local multi-sport high school phenom Bubba Starling returned to baseball activities at the team’s alternate training site, T-Bones Stadium in Kansas City, Kansas, on Monday.
Starling, a product of Gardner Edgerton High School and No. 5 overall pick in the 2011 MLB Draft, went on the injured list Wednesday. Some had speculated he’d contracted COVID-19, but a source with knowledge of the situation refuted that on Monday.
The source told The Star that Starling, 28, did not contract COVID-19 and has been cleared by a medical panel.
Last Tuesday night in Chicago, Starling’s was the final Royals at-bat against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. He showed no signs of injury at the end of the game, and he even took part in the team’s post-game media call. The next day, however, the Royals placed Starling on the injured list without an injury designation, removing him from an earlier version of that day’s starting lineup.
This season, MLB teams have been allowed to place players on the IL without an injury designation amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Due to privacy laws, a MLB team cannot announce a player has tested positive for the coronavirus without that player’s permission. The Royals have announced eight positive tests dating to the start of spring training 2.0 in Kansas City during the first week of July.
Starling felt ill, the source said, and his IL stint was precautionary due to potential virus concerns and precautions around COVID-19’s known incubation period. The move also gave the team the roster flexibility to add a player while Starling’s situation was sorted out.
Because of COVID situation, players can go on the IL and be re-activated prior to the end of the usual 10-day period if they’ve been cleared by a medical panel as well as officials from MLB and the MLB Players Association.
Starling would not have been able to return to the Royals’ alternate training site without that medical clearance.
His time at the alternate site is being geared toward getting him at-bats and allowing him to regain his timing before he’s activated and rejoins the major-league roster. He could rejoin the club as early as this week.
Starling, who made his MLB debut last season, has played in nine games (six starts) this season. He has gone 4 for 19 (.211) with a double and three RBIs. He drove in the winning runs in the team’s 5-3 win over the Detroit Tigers on July 30 with a two-run double in the eighth inning.
This story was originally published August 10, 2020 at 2:00 PM with the headline "Source: Royals’ Bubba Starling did not have COVID. And his IL stint could end very soon."
