Coronavirus: A's, MLB working on ‘alternative plans' after Oakland event ban

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The A's are working with MLB "on alternative plans" for home games scheduled in March following the City of Oakland's ban of events with over 1,000 people, the team announced Wednesday.

"We will provide more information about our plans for the games, including our ticket policy for impacted games, as soon as possible," the statement said.

The Giants announced earlier Wednesday the team will not play the preseason home game on March 24 against the A's at Oracle Park due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. This was on the heels of San Francisco mayor London Breed's statement of prohibiting gatherings of more than 1,000 people. The ban is in line with other decisions made by state and local officials as the virus has spread.

Shortly after San Francisco's announcement, Alameda County issued its own similar ban for mass gatherings as well.

"At this time, we recommend postponing or canceling non-essential mass gatherings and large community events where large numbers of people are within arm's length of one another," the county said in a statement (H/T KGO-TV). "Mass gatherings do not include typical office environments or stores."

Both the Giants and A's currently are playing spring training games in Arizona. 

Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Tony Clark released a statement on Wednesday as well:

“The Players Association is in daily contact with Major League Baseball, and our staffs are conferring regularly with federal health officials, state and local governments, and infectious disease experts to develop contingency plans. As circumstances evolve, our efforts will evolve as well. 

“Players want to compete and provide entertainment to fans. The Association’s focus will remain finding ways to do so in an environment that protects not just players’ personal health and safety, but also the health and safety of fans, umpires, ballpark employees, club employees and everyone in the baseball family.”

[RELATED: Leagues close locker rooms to media amid coronavirus]

Over 1,000 people are confirmed to have the coronavirus in the United States. According to NBC News, 37 people have died in the U.S. due to the virus. 

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