Lorenzo Cain Opts Out Of Season As More MLB Players Test Positive For Coronavirus

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Lorenzo Cain has decided to sit out of the rest of the 2020 MLB season. Cain’s decision was first reported on Twitter through the team’s official Twitter account on Saturday.

The decision came not long after Major League Baseball announced his team’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals was postponed for a second straight day after it was reported that at least four more members of the Cards tested positive for the coronavirus.

While Cain hasn’t spoken publicly about why he made the call today and not before the season began, analysts around the sport believe the developments with the Cardinals might have played a part.

R.J. Anderson of CBS Sports said that Cain told the club of his decision earlier on Saturday. He represents a big loss to the team, both offensively and defensively according to the writer. He had played in five games so far for the Brewers and was off to a good start at the plate. The outfielder was slashing.333/.429/.389 in the early going.

While Brewers and the Cardinals were supposed to play a doubleheader on Sunday to make up for Friday’s cancellation, most around the sport believe it’s only a matter of time before the entire series is postponed. What happens after that isn’t known.

Anderson pointed out that Cain is just the latest high-profile player to decide not to play in 2020. He joins guys like the San Francisco Giants’ Buster Posey, Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher David Price and Washington Nationals first baseman Ryan Zimmerman.

One player who opted out eventually decided he wanted to take part, after all. Nick Markakis missed the start of the season but returned to the Atlanta Braves this week. August 1 was said to be the deadline for anyone who opted out to come back and play. That means Cain is done for the rest of 2020, however long it is.

The outfielder’s reason for opting out will have a direct effect on how much money he can make for the rest of the year. Unless he is deemed to be someone who is at high risk, he will not receive pay or service-time credit pay. A prorated amount of his full-season salary would have been just shy of $6 million.

Anderson said it’s worth pointing out that Cain has made $66 million over the course of his career and he’s under contract through 2022. He’ll make another $35 million before his current contract with the Brewers comes to an end.