Three Hanshin Tigers players have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the baseball team said Friday, becoming the first cases in Japanese pro baseball.
The team's pitcher Shintaro Fujinami, 25, took a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test Thursday and was found to be infected. His teammates Hayata Ito, 30, and Kenya Nagasaka, 25, were also confirmed as infected after undergoing the tests.
The three players dined together in the middle of this month. Fujinami reported to the team his symptom of having difficulty smelling, while the other two complained of trouble with their sense of taste.
The Hanshin Tigers have made the three players stay at home or other places, and the top and farm teams have suspended action until Wednesday.
According to the team, Fujinami was treated at two hospitals in Hyogo Prefecture on Tuesday, after complaining of having been unable to smell coffee and wine since several days ago. His symptoms did not improve, so he visited a different hospital on Wednesday. As abnormalities in smell and taste have been seen in some patients infected with the virus, a doctor recommended that he take a test for it. He underwent the test Thursday and was confirmed as infected late that night.
The other two also tested positive after complaining they could not taste miso soup.
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