Today's newsletter is out!

Inside: MLB goes to an old playbook -- scapegoating a player -- while working overtime to cover up its own very serious transgressions. Don't worry, though. I don't ignore them.

That and much, much more! https://cupofcoffee.substack.com/p/cup-of-coffee-october-29-2020

As I write today, (a) MLB’s handling of Justin Turner’s COVID test; and (b) Turner’s joining the postgame celebration are two distinct issues, even if Major League Baseball attempts to conflate them into one, with Turner getting the bulk of the blame.

Turner deserves blame for his irresponsibility, but it was not him who tried to disappear an inconclusive test and allowed him to play in Game 6, no doubt gambling that the followup would be negative and all of it forgotten. MLB made a bad bet and now they're trying to cover it.

As I explain in today's newsletter, there are only two possibilities. The first possibility: MLB ignored COVID protocols and allowed Turner to play despite his inconclusive test because, “hey, World Series baby, who gives a crap?”

The second: Major League Baseball, without telling anyone, and against all public health best practices, actually changed its protocols at some point between the regular season and the postseason and no longer treated inconclusive tests as potentially positive tests any longer.

It has to be one of those. I can’t think of a third possibility. It was either premeditated irresponsibility or irresponsibility in the heat of the moment.

MLB has not yet said which it was. Or who gave the OK for Turner to stay in the game after the 2nd inning Tuesday night.

MLB, based on its statement yesterday, is trying to shove all of this on Turner. Based on how I see it playing in the press right now, that may work for a while. But there's gonna be a tick-tock of how Turner was greenlighted for Game 6, and it's not gonna reflect well on MLB.

100% this. You can't tell a guy with a test that, in August, would've kept him out of a game, that he's totally good to go and then, later, act outraged that he didn't follow your COVID protocols. https://twitter.com/dorgal/status/1321769128114475008?s=20