Coronavirus: Here's what's happening in the sports world on Wednesday

The latest on how the coronavirus outbreak is affecting sports around the globe:

• PGA Tour testing convoy ready to roll
• MLB rejects 114-game plan, no counter planned
• Ryder Cup decision expected by end of June
• NBA sets July 31 as restart date with 22 teams: report
• Elite distance runners to raise money for relief program
• Japanese baseball exhibition game called off; virus suspected

PGA Tour lines up on-site testing for tourneys

The PGA Tour has announced a deal with Sanford Health to conduct COVID-19 testing of players, caddies and essential personnel five days before the season resumes. That applies to every stop on the PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions and the developmental Korn Ferry Tour.

Sanford Health is based in South Dakota and is title sponsor of a PGA Tour Champions event.

The company has three mobile testing units it will deploy across the country. Each one has a driver and three lab technicians. A unit will be at tournaments from Saturday through Thursday before leaving for the next closest event.

The Tour says results from the PCR tests are expected back in a manner of hours. Senior vice-president of tour administration Andy Levinson says it also allows ample testing without taking away resources from the community where the tournaments are played.

The tour expects about 400 people to require testing at tournaments upon the restart. No spectators are allowed for the first five events on the PGA Tour.

MLB rejects players' 114-game proposal

Major League Baseball rejected the players' offer for a 114-game regular season in the pandemic-delayed season with no additional salary cuts and told the union it did not plan to make a counterproposal, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press.

Players made their proposal Sunday, up from an 82-game regular season in management's offer last week. Opening day would be June 30 and the regular season would end Oct. 31, nearly five weeks after the Sept. 27 conclusion that MLB's proposal stuck to from the season's original schedule.

MLB told the union it had no interest in extending the season into November, when it fears a second wave of the coronavirus could disrupt the post-season and jeopardize $787 million in broadcast revenue. MLB notified the union of the rejection in a letter sent by email Wednesday.

Ryder Cup decision expected by end of June

The chief executive of the European Tour says the fate of this year's Ryder Cup will be decided by the end of the month.

Keith Pelley says in an extensive interview with the McKellar Journal podcast that the European Tour and the PGA will have "conversations" about the Ryder Cup now that the revamped schedules of both tours have been announced.

Pelley says there will be "a direction at the end of the month."

The Ryder Cup is still on schedule for Sept. 25-27 at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin despite massive disruption to the sports schedule because of the coronavirus outbreak.

It could be held without fans but golfers like Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka are among those saying they are against that idea.

NBA sets July 31 as restart date: report

The NBA has told the National Basketball Players Association it will present a 22-team plan for restarting the season to the league's board of governors on Thursday, a person with knowledge of the situation said.

The teams that will be going to the ESPN Wide World Of Sports complex on the Disney campus near Orlando, Florida would play eight games to determine playoff seeding starting around July 31 before the post-season begins, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity on Wednesday because the league has not released its proposal publicly.

The plan, if approved, would have 13 Western Conference teams and nine Eastern Conference teams going to Disney and the cutoff being that teams must be within six games of a playoff spot at this point. Playoffs would start in August, and the NBA Finals will likely stretch into October, the person said.

The Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers, Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics already have clinched playoff spots — and, if only eight games are left, that would mean the Miami Heat, Indiana Pacers, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Clippers, Denver Nuggets, Utah Jazz, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets would theoretically have clinched spots as well.

The Dallas Mavericks would be virtually assured of clinching a West spot, holding a seven-game lead over eighth-place Memphis. So that would mean the Grizzlies, Portland, New Orleans, Sacramento, San Antonio and Phoenix all would be in the running for the No. 8 seed out West. In the East, Washington is six games behind No. 7 Brooklyn and 5-1/2 games behind No. 8 Orlando — so within range of triggering a play-in series.

Elite distance runners to raise money for relief program

Sara Hall, Tyler Andrews and other elite distance runners will try to break treadmill world records this weekend as part of a virtual road race to raise money for a coronavirus relief program.

Called the "Chaski Challenge," the event features five-kilometre and 50 km distances as well as a team relay. Runners have 24 hours starting Friday to post a time on their treadmill or outside if permitted. There will also be a live broadcast for the "Festival of Records" event Saturday in which elite athletes chase after seven world records.

The marks range from the men's and women's treadmill half marathon records to a 100 km treadmill attempt.

Among those planning to compete in the events are Hall, ultra-marathoner Michael Wardian, British distance runner Adam Holland and U.S. Olympic marathon trials qualifier Regina Lopez. A Zoom screen will help keep track of the progress along with a live tracker visualization app. There will also be an announcer.

Donations from the race will go to Feeding America as part of its COVID-19 relief fund.

Yomiuri Giants call off exhibition game; virus suspected

The Yomiuri Giants, Japan's most famous baseball team, called off a pre-season game on Wednesday with reports that at least one player may have tested positive for the coronavirus.

Japan hopes to open its delayed baseball season on June 19 in empty stadiums. But this news puts the 12-team league in jeopardy of being able to start.

A Giants spokesman confirmed the Wednesday game with the Seibu Lions was called off but declined to give any information about positive tests.

Japanese media reported that a Giants' player was believed to have contacted COVID-19 but did not offer sources. Japanese television NHK said more than one player was believed to have tested positive and the Ashai newspaper said it was two.

The Hanshin Tigers reported at least one player testing positive several months ago, Sports in Japan have been suspended for more than two months because of the coronavirus pandemic.