Joe Biden is not optimistic that professional sports such as baseball are possible at this point due to the coronavirus pandemic, though he thought that some might be safe.
Asked Tuesday whether sports such as Major League Baseball should be allowed to proceed, Biden said: “Well, that is probably not going to be able to happen based on what the leagues themselves are saying.”
“I mean, you have the Marlins saying we can’t do so many people,” said the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee after a speech in Wilmington, Delaware. “So, I think they should just follow the science.”
Also, on Tuesday, MLB suspended the Miami Marlins season due to a coronavirus outbreak among at least 19 members of the team. Other professional baseball teams have not canceled their seasons.
The former vice president though that professional basketball, however, might be able to proceed.
“One thing that seems to work a little bit, I don’t know, basketball, where no one’s traveling, they’re all sequestered in one place,” said Biden, previously a 36-year Delaware senator.
The National Basketball League has a “bubble” of teams and players all situated in Orlando, Florida.
Biden said that the reaction of the sports community to the coronavirus highlights the seriousness of the disease.
“When you know when you have a lot of ball, football players turning down 8, 10 million bucks a year, saying ‘I’m not gonna take the risk of playing,’ you’ve got to listen,” Biden said.
