David Price rips hypocritical Rob Manfred over player health comments

David Price bashes MLB commissioner Rob Manfred after Miami Marlins fiasco.

It seemed too good to be true that the MLB season could go on without a bubble swimmingly. That positive mindset ended on Monday morning, as near 11 members of the Miami Marlins tested positive for the coronavirus, which effectively canceled their Monday home game against the Baltimore Orioles and the contest between the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees.

This outbreak was one of the main reasons why a handful of players opted out of the 2020 season. One of those athletes was Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher David Price, who ripped commissioner Rob Manfred for his hypocritical comments about player health.

Manfred and MLB now under the microscope.

After the contentious negotiations between the MLB and MLB Players Association, Manfred stressed that the health of all players is “paramount.” Many were skittish, considering how Manfred handled season restart discussions and the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal.

On July 4, Price opted out of the season, citing not playing was in “the best interest” of the health of himself and his family.

Manfred is once again entering damage control for the umpteenth time this calendar year. As mentioned earlier, less than a handful of Marlins players tested positive for COVID-19 this weekend. Instead of preventing the team from taking the field on Sunday against the Phillies, the league and club didn’t think about postponing the game. In fact, Marlins shortstop Miguel Rojas said the team talked about the situation, and said that not playing was “never [their] mentality.”

Now, the Marlins are the cautionary tale. Yes, the league had a 100-plus page protocol on how to handle health and safety during the ongoing global pandemic, but it seems as though it was optional reading instead of a mandatory study guide.

Price was one of the first to opt-out, and after this latest outbreak, we shouldn’t be surprised if countless others choose to sit at home for the remainder of the year.