Chicago Cubs pitching coach Tommy Hottovy is recovering from a severe case of COVID-19 that quarantined him for 30 days.
The 38-year-old broke down as he detailed a harrowing ordeal during a conference call Wednesday. The Cubs resume workouts Friday for the first time since Major League Baseball shut down camps on March 12.
"It's still kind of raw in the fact that we just got through it and to relive it," said Hottovy, in his second season as Cubs pitching coach. "Obviously, it affected us pretty significantly for a month. I felt it was important for me to talk through what I went through because too much of what's out there is the easy stories of what people go through with this."
Hottovy learned he had the virus on the third day he felt ill. He isolated with symptoms that got so bad he spent part of one day at the hospital. He is grateful his wife, Andrea, and young children did not get sick.
Hottovy had a relentless fever, difficulty breathing, dehydration and an increased heart rate. It was particularly bad at night, making sleep near impossible.
Iowa game still on
The Cardinals replaced the Yankees as the opponent for the White Sox in the Field of Dreams game on Aug. 13 at Dyersville, Iowa.
The schedule change caused by the pandemic meant the White Sox won't play the Yankees this season.
It remained unclear whether fans would be allowed at the game. Major League Baseball hopes to announce its new schedule next week.
