The Washington Nationals will play at Nationals Park this season, after exploring alternate sites

WASHINGTON — The Washington Nationals will play this season at Nationals Park in Washington, the team confirmed Friday morning. Doubt arose because of the District of Columbia’s coronavirus regulations, and the Nationals had actively explored alternate sites in Fredericksburg, Va. and, as a last resort, their spring training facility in West Palm Beach, Fla.

But the Nationals have decided to stick with their original plan. They will host the New York Yankees for opening day on July 23, and the matchup will be in their home ballpark.

The Nationals were concerned about whether the city's health and safety guidelines could keep them from being competitive in 2020. D.C.'s protocol states that anyone who contacts a person confirmed to have coronavirus should "separate yourself from other people (self-quarantine) as much as possible at your home for 14 days from the time you were exposed." Since the Nationals began training on July 3, this applied to up to 11 players and one coach.

During MLB-mandated intake screening on July 1, 2 and 3, two Nationals tested positive for coronavirus. Six were on one of two MLB-chartered flights from the Dominican Republic to Miami on July 1, which carried players who soon tested positive, too. Aggressive contact tracing led a group of players and hitting coach Kevin Long into quarantine, where they had to stay for 14 days.

This is where MLB regulations clash with the city's.

MLB's has six stipulations for someone to return after potential coronavirus exposure: an individual must test negative in an expedited test and self-quarantine while waiting for the result; they must be asymptomatic; they must undergo frequent temperature tests and symptom monitoring for at least 10 days after the possible exposure; they must wear a mask at all times, except when on the field; they must undergo a daily saliva test for seven days following possible exposure; and they must immediately self-isolate if they show symptoms or are otherwise instructed to by the team's medical staff.

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D.C., however, required Nationals players and coaches to pass through a 14-day quarantine period, making the club unsure if this would be tenable across a 60-game season. On Thursday, when it was still exploring alternative sites, there appeared to be two clear options: One, the city would bend its regulations because players and coaches are being tested every other day per MLB's protocol. Or two, the city would not, and the Nationals would have to decide if playing in Washington was their best option.

The Nationals had already been approved to play in the District. The city granted their waiver request on June 30, requiring the Nationals immediately report any coronavirus cases to the District of Columbia’s Department of Health.