On Monday, outlets such as the Associated Press (h/t ESPN ) reported that Texas Rangers All-Star Joey Gallo was missing the start of spring training 2.0 sessions after he tested positive for the coronavirus.
Confusion arose, however, when the 26-year-old outfielder returned a negative result in between multiple positives.
According to Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, Gallo tested negative again on Tuesday:
Joey Gallo tested negative for COVID-19 today via nasal swab at private lab in Dallas. Must test negative again in 24 hours to be cleared to return to field. Nasal swabs have twice been negative, but there was positive saliva test by MLB Lab inbetween. More protocol confusion
— Evan Grant (@Evan_P_Grant) July 7, 2020
Per safety protocols, Gallo must test negative once more in 24 hours before he returns to official team gatherings. If he tests positive, he'll have to begin the process again and provide two negative tests more than 24 hours apart and be cleared by a doctor before he's allowed to rejoin teammates.
Multiple entities around the sports world have claimed "false positives" during testing periods. Premier League teams Arsenal and Norwich City, Major League Soccer side Sporting Kansas City, the PGA, NWSL club Orlando Pride, and the UFC have, at one time or another, questioned the accuracy of coronavirus tests and if they determine whether or not a supposed "infected" person is also contagious.
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