SEATTLE -- The Mariners took the field together for the first time in 112 days on Friday. At least some of them.

Manager Scott Servais said on a Friday morning Zoom call with reporters that 15-20 players weren’t available on the first day of Summer Camp because they had yet to get results back on their COVID-19 tests.

Servais said the Mariners have also had “a few players test positive,” which means they’ll be quarantined and kept away from teammates and workouts at T-Mobile Park until they are cleared with two negative tests.

Welcome to the new world of Major League Baseball, where the Mariners are taking things one step at a time as they return from the shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic and gear up for their three-week preparation for the start of a 60-game regular season on July 23 or 24.

“We had players come in at different times, and sometimes it takes about 48 hours, maybe a little less, to get the results back,” Servais said of the testing procedure. “Not everybody has cleared.”

Per MLB policy, the Mariners won’t identify players if they test positive for COVID-19. Players can be placed on a COVID-19 injured list, which doesn’t require sitting out a specific number of days. Instead, a player must self-quarantine and won’t be allowed to return until testing negative twice.

“We’ve had a few players test positive, but we’ll wait and see,” Servais said. “There’s protocol they have to go through before they can come back in the bubble, so to speak. T-Mobile is our bubble, and we’ll follow the guidelines MLB has set up. They’re very strict guidelines, rightly so.

“We just want to do the right thing there. I’m not going to get into any specifics on any health issues with players or coaches here as we go along, but that’s where we’re at. We’ll be 15-20 players light today, just making sure they can get in the bubble.”

Six-man rotation could be long term
The Mariners are planning to open the season with a six-man rotation to take some of the pressure off their starting pitchers as they return from the long layoff, and Servais indicated that might be more than a temporary idea.

“I think the six-man rotation is a great thing for where we’re at right now and something we’ll look at going forward into the future,” Servais said. “It’s really important to keep these guys healthy, and all these guys throw better when they have an extra day. So because we’re using a shortened season, let’s stay with it. It’s something I’m looking forward to.”

The Mariners already have six logical starters with returners Marco Gonzales and Yusei Kikuchi, free-agent additions Taijuan Walker and Kendall Graveman and rookie prospects Justus Sheffield and Justin Dunn.

“I haven’t had any pushback from any of our pitchers,” Servais said. “They all understand this is new times and you have to be open to new ideas. That extra day should really help them and help their stuff. We have a couple guys coming off injury and a couple young pitchers that can really use the extra day to get more work in and raise their intensity during their bullpen day, so they can work on some things there. So there are a lot of positives.”

Worth noting
• With no games against other teams during Summer Camp, the Mariners will begin playing intrasquad games in about a week. Servais said he expects starting pitchers to get 2-3 outings to build up their arm strength, and the club will likely carry 16-17 pitchers -- instead of the normal 12-13 -- on the expanded 30-man Opening Day roster.

• The Mariners have received a helping hand from the Seahawks, who have given their permission to use the adjacent CenturyLink Field to conduct some workouts to allow more spacing and room. Servais said 8-10 pitchers will use the football stadium to get in their throwing work and fielding drills in each of the morning and afternoon sessions early on.