Coronavirus throws a curve to baseball, beaches and gyms

The coronavirus has dealt a setback to some cherished outdoor activities, as nine players on a Major League Baseball team have tested positive for the illness, with two crews of lifeguards in New Jersey in the same boat.

Nine players on the Miami Marlins' 30-man roster, two taxi squad players and two staff members tested positive, a person familiar with the situation told The Associated Press, speaking anonymously because the results hadn't been made public.

The outbreak led to the postponement of the team's home opener against the Baltimore Orioles on Monday in Florida and their next game on Tuesday. Also, the New York Yankees-Philadelphia Phillies game scheduled for Monday in Philadelphia has been postponed, because the Yankees would have been in the same clubhouse that the Marlins used in Philadelphia.

"Postponing tonight's (Monday's) home opener was the correct decision to ensure we take a collective pause and try to properly grasp the totality of this situation," Marlins CEO Derek Jeter said in a statement Monday.

There has been no serious discussion of the Marlins suspending their season, according to a union source, The Miami Herald reported.

The news, however, will present a challenge for American's pastime, which just began an abbreviated 60-game schedule last Thursday.

"Now we REALLY get to see if MLB is going to put players health first," tweeted Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher David Price, who opted out of playing this season.

Dr Andrew Morris, a professor of infectious diseases at the University of Toronto, said he wasn't surprised by the Marlins' outbreak and called MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred's plan flawed.

"It makes me wonder if they are listening to the advice of experts or whether their experts are giving them good advice," Morris said. This was not a plan anyone who knows what they are talking about would have conceived. It's playing out like it was supposed to play out."

"The last thing they would consider doing is canceling the season ... there is just too much money on the line," Bob Dorfman, a sports marketing expert at Baker Street Advertising in San Francisco, said of MLB.

Milwaukee Brewers manager Craig Counsell said that his team will increase safety efforts. "This was a huge punch to the face, a realization that we have to be perfect," Counsell said. "It feels like a tough task, but we're going to try and get it right."

In New Jersey, more than two dozen lifeguards from two beach towns have tested positive for the coronavirus after having been together socially, authorities said.

Officials said the lifeguards are from Harvey Cedars and Surf City, neighboring boroughs on the popular destination of Long Beach Island.

Harvey Cedars said Saturday that 17 lifeguards, all of whom had "attended a party in Surf City", had tested positive. The island's health director earlier said a dozen Surf City lifeguards had tested positive.

Also in New Jersey, the owners of a gym that has ignored Governor Phil Murphy's executive order to remain closed during the pandemic were arrested Monday on contempt charges.

The owners of the Atilis Gym in Bellmawr also were charged with obstruction and violating the Disaster Control Act.

A state judge had ruled Friday that New Jersey authorities could close a gym and authorized the state health department to put locks on the doors.

The gym reopened in May, starting a legal battle over whether Murphy's order for nonessential businesses to close was constitutional. It continued to operate despite receiving summonses each day. Crowds often showed up to support the gym.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this story.