Major League Baseball on Thursday denied Boston Red Sox outfielder Hunter Renfroe‘s allegation that the league told the team to stop testing for COVID-19 amid the outbreak spreading through its clubhouse.
“MLB basically told us to stop the testing and just treat the symptoms,” Renfroe said earlier Thursday on WEEI’s “Merloni and Fauria” show. “And we were like, ‘No, we’re going to figure out what’s going on and keep trying to keep this thing under control.'”
Host Lou Merloni followed up, asking whether MLB had asked the Red Sox to stop testing.
“Yes,” Renfroe said.
“And just so to try to play, move on and don’t worry about it?” Merloni asked.
“Yes,” Renfroe said.
Renfroe “is completely wrong and inaccurate,” a league spokesperson told The Boston Globe.
The Red Sox refuted Renfroe’s comments.
“We have been following MLB’s COVID-19 protocols all season long,” the team said in a statement. “We have consulted closely with them on everything we’ve done and continue to test and their medical staff has been very supportive.”
As of Thursday, nine people with the team have tested positive for the virus, with 11 others sidelined due to symptoms or close contact with positive cases. Among the players sitting out are Xander Bogaerts, Enrique Hernandez, Christian Arroyo, Matt Barnes and Nick Pivetta.
The Red Sox are under the 85% vaccination threshold in their clubhouse, although some of the players who tested positive are vaccinated.