Alex Cora pulls Xander Boagerts in middle of Red Sox COVID-19 outbreak (Video)

In the middle of the Boston showdown with the Tampa Bay Rays, Alex Cora pulled shortstop Xander Bogaerts from the action. 

Just what in the heck is going on in Tampa Bay? In the middle of a highly-anticipated contest between the Rays and Red Sox, shortstop Xander Bogaerts was removed from the contest by skipper Alex Cora.

Bogaerts didn’t appear to be injured whatsoever. What makes things even more concerning here is the fact that is it was Cora who called out for his shortstop to get out of the action at once. In the video below, you can see how things went down.

Later, it was confirmed Bogaerts tested positive for COVID-19.

Red Sox: Xander Bogaerts was removed from Tuesday’s game early on

Unfortunately for Boston, the team is in the middle of a COVID-19 outbreak, as multiple guys are away from the team.

On Tuesday, Cora announced that Hirokazu Sawamura tested positive. As things stand, Boston has four pitchers and two position players on the COVID-19 list. With this, they must be away from the clubhouse and follow the MLB protocols before they can return to action.

As for Bogaerts, he’s in the middle of a solid season for the club, as he’s hitting .297 with 20 homers and 69 RBI. For Boston as a whole, this outbreak comes with the team trying to hold on to the second Wild Card spot. The Red Sox and Yankees currently have those Wild Card positions, but the Athletics, Mariners and Blue Jays are ready to try and take them down.

Bogaerts starting and playing in this game despite potentially dealing with COVID-19 symptoms or being a close contact is concerning to say the least. We’ll have more details on this story as it progresses.