Eleven members of the Chiba Lotte Marines, including seven top-team players, tested positive for COVID-19 in testing done in the aftermath of pitcher Daiki Iwashita's positive test on Sunday, the team announced Tuesday afternoon.
Takashi Ogino, an All-Star last season, Ikuhiro Kiyota, Takashi Toritani and Katsuya Kakunaka were among the players to test positive. Shota Ishimine, a member of the coaching staff, and three team staffers also tested positive. The Marines said some among the 11 had fevers and were experiencing mild symptoms.
The seven players who tested positive and four who tested negative but are deemed to have been in close contact with Iwashita will be taken off the top-team roster. There were 78 tests conducted (among players, coaches and staffers) on the top team. The club also tested 73 members of its farm team, with all results returning negative. Including Iwashita and another staffer, who both tested positive on Sunday, the Marines are dealing with 13 positive cases.