The Golden State Warriors will play Thursday's game against the Brooklyn Nets with no fans inside the Chase Center, the team announced Wednesday.

"Due to escalating concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, and in consultation with the City and County of San Francisco, tomorrow night's game vs. the Nets at Chase Center will be played without fans," the team tweeted. "Fans with tickets to this game will receive a refund in the amount paid."

The Warriors are still meeting about the matter, and further direction could come from a league owners call Wednesday afternoon, sources told ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski. After Thursday's game, the Warriors are away from the Chase Center until March 25.

Golden State players are set to meet with members of team management to be updated on the latest information, sources told Wojnarowski.

In a statement, NBA spokesman Mike Bass said the league is "closely monitoring developments to determine the appropriate course for future Warriors home games and will continue to work with local governments, the CDC and public health experts to protect the health of our fans, players, coaches and staff in NBA markets across the country."

The team's decision followed an order from the San Francisco Health Office prohibiting events where 1,000 or more people assemble. The Warriors tweeted that other events at the Chase Center through March 21 -- consisting of three concerts and a G League game -- would be canceled or postponed.

In a meeting with the National Basketball Players Association on the coronavirus crisis Wednesday, the NBA and union discussed ways to continue the season without the cancellation or loss of games while conceding the sport was trending toward a period of time without fans in attendance at arenas, sources told ESPN's Zach Lowe and Adrian Wojnarowski.

The NBA/NBPA discussions were a prelude to a larger conference call with the NBA board of governors, sources said. The call is expected to include one designated ownership representative of each team, sources said. There are two additional calls set for Thursday for team presidents and general managers, sources said.

The NBA is discussing a number of possibilities, including moving some games to NBA cities that have yet to suffer outbreaks, eliminating fans from buildings for games or, more drastically, suspending game operations for a period of time. The league is bracing for the losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars across the sport, sources told Lowe and Wojnarowski.

Also on Wednesday, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told a congressional committee that he would recommend the NBA not allow fans at games in response to the coronavirus.

The San Francisco Giants announced that a March 24 exhibition game against the Oakland Athletics at Oracle Park will not be played. The Giants said they are working with the Athletics to "finalize alternative arrangements."

The number of coronavirus cases in the United States has topped 1,000, with the number of deaths at 31.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Cleveland Indians right-hander Carlos Carrasco does not have structural damage in his sore pitching elbow.

The Indians announced Wednesday that an MRI confirmed that Carrasco is "dealing with mild right elbow inflammation."

Carrasco had an anti-flammatory injection and will not throw for a few days.

The 32-year-old Carrasco missed three months last season battling chronic myeloid leukemia. He appeared in 23 games and went 6-7 with a 5.29 ERA.

He came to camp looking to regain the form that saw him win a league-leading 18 games in 2017 and 17 the next season.

The Mariners will move home games out of Seattle through the end of March, following the state of Washington's decision to ban large group events as a response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Seattle had been scheduled to open the season at Safeco Field with a four-game series against Texas from March 26-29 then host Minnesota in a three-game series from March 30 through April 1.

The Mariners said they are working with the commissioner's office on alternative plans.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Wednesday announced a ban on all large gatherings in the three counties of the Seattle metro area through at least the end of March.

In their statement, the Mariners said, "While we hope to be back to playing baseball in Seattle as soon as possible, the health and safety of our community is the most important consideration."

The team said it will give credits to season-ticket holders for games missed and will automatically refund single-ticket buyers who purchased tickets through the Mariners.

Other Seattle teams are also affected. The Seattle Sounders of the MLS announced Wednesday that their March 21 match against FC Dallas at CenturyLink Field has been postponed. The XFL's Seattle Dragons will play their game against the LA Wildcats on Sunday at the same field but without fans.

Teams throughout the United States are canceling or moving games. The NBA's Golden State Warriors will play Thursday's home game without fans because of San Francisco's ban on gatherings of more than 1,000 people. That also affects baseball's Giants, who said they won't play a home exhibition game against the Athletics on March 24 and are trying to make alternative plans.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Cleveland Indians executive Chris Antonetti says the franchise and representatives for star shortstop Francisco Lindor made a "sincere and earnest effort" to agree on a long-term contract before deciding this week to suspend talks.

Antonetti, the president of baseball operations, said Wednesday the sides worked for months and tried "different and creative concepts" to strike a deal, but ultimately decided not to continue negotiations with opening day two weeks away. Lindor characterized the discussions in a similar manner to The Athletic on Monday.

Lindor will make $17.5 million this year and can become a free agent after the 2021 season.

"I'm really appreciative of the effort Francisco and his representatives and our ownership put into the process of trying to find alignment," Antonetti said.

Lindor, a four-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner, hit .284 with 32 home runs, 22 stolen bases and an .854 OPS last season. The 26-year-old is among the game's top young stars and has been with the organization since Cleveland selected him with the eighth overall pick in the 2011 amateur draft.

Cleveland's payroll projects to be down significantly from its final figure of $123 million last year. The team traded star pitchers Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer over the past eight months partially to cut salary.

Antonetti said he expected "we will have the resources" to add pieces in-season if the club is contending, but that isn't assuaging Indians fans frustrated that Cleveland is spending less as AL Central rivals Minnesota and the Chicago White Sox are aggressively pursuing the division title.

Lindor told The Athletic on Monday he believed small-market Cleveland could spend $120 million annually. Antonetti said he didn't know where Lindor got that number but said the sides did discuss the Indians' ability to add players around Lindor if they did sign a lucrative deal to make him a lifetime Indian.

"I think fundamentally it's the economic system in baseball that has a big impact on what we're able to do," Antonetti said. "Something that's a function of our market, and our market size, and how Cleveland compares to other cities."

Asked if it might be impossible for a team like Cleveland to keep a player of Lindor's caliber for his entire career, Antonetti said "it's really hard."

"Any team can afford one player individually," he said. "The question is can you afford an individual player and still build a championship team around him. And that's ultimately the problem we're trying to solve. And it's really difficult in baseball's economic system for teams in smaller markets to be able to do that."

Antonetti said the dialogue could prove helpful to negotiations down the road but also acknowledged Cleveland could explore trading Lindor before he reaches free agency if a deal isn't struck.

"I think all of those options will be on the table," Antonetti said. "As I've said from the beginning, our clear preference would be to have Francisco here for a far longer term, and keep him an Indian for a really long time.

"If that's not possible, we have to then look at what those other alternatives are."

Game notes
RHP Mike Clevinger threw his first bullpen Monday since having surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee on Feb. 14. The knee injury was expected to sideline him for about two months, and while Cleveland is urging caution, the Indians are optimistic about the timeline. "It is amazing," pitching coach Carl Willis said. "To see him over the past week and the intensity of his throwing programs and how he's been able to keep his arm prepared, probably exceeded our expectations of that."

Five-time Paralympic gold medallist will be joined by Sophie Hahn and Stef Reid as para athletics programme is announced

Hannah Cockroft, Sophie Hahn and Stef Reid have been announced for the Müller Anniversary Games, which will see them return to the scene of their 2017 World Para Athletics Championships success.

The two-day event returns to the London Stadium on July 4-5, with Cockroft set to race the T34 100m while Hahn will contest the T35-38 100m and Reid will return in the T64 long jump.

An international men’s 100m alongside three additional domestic para athletics events will also take place, including a women’s 100m (ambulant), men’s 200m (ambulant) and men’s T53/54 400m (wheelchair).

Five-time Paralympic champion Cockroft said: “I am so excited to be heading back to the London Stadium to compete at the Müller Anniversary Games. It will be an important race for me ahead of the Paralympic Games in Tokyo.

“Opportunities to race against the best in the world in front of a home crowd don’t come around very often, so it will be a special occasion and a significant milestone in my season.

“The support from British fans is like no other, and I cannot wait to compete in front of them. I have great memories from the London Games in 2012, and the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships, so it will be the perfect send off before my third Paralympics.”

Reid, who has recently been appointed as a UK Athletics vice president, said: “I cannot wait to get back into the London Stadium where I’ve experienced some of the best moments of my career. I still get butterflies when I drive past the stadium and the event will be the perfect send off to Tokyo 2020!”

Cherry Alexander, major events director at British Athletics, added: “British Athletics are delighted to integrate several outstanding para athletics events into the programme at the Müller Anniversary Games. We are delighted to offer world-class competition to athletes which acts as a crucial milestone in their build-up to the Paralympic Games later this year.

“There are a number of Paralympic, world and European champions who will join us across the weekend of the 4 and 5 July, so you are seeing the very best athletes take to the track and field at this prestigious event in the calendar.

“We are very much looking forward to seeing the best para athletes in the world line-up alongside Katarina Johnson-Thompson, Dina Asher-Smith and Mondo Duplantis who have already been confirmed.”

The inaugural 12-team Fed Cup Finals have been postponed because of coronavirus.

The event was scheduled to take place at the Laszlo Papp Arena in Budapest from 14 to 19 April.

The Hungarian government banned indoor gatherings of more than 100 people earlier on Wednesday - shortly after the ITF Board had taken the decision to postpone the Finals.

The ITF says it is committed to staging the Finals at a later date this year.

April's play-offs are also affected, which means Great Britain's tie in Mexico has been postponed.

WEEDSPORT, N.Y. – The Stirling Lubricants Modified Series presented by Champion Racing Oil will give the best in modified racing multiple opportunities to cash in at Weedsport Speedway this year.

Featuring increased purses across the board, the Stirling Lubricants Modified Series will be headlined by the $17,000 to win Super DIRTcar Series Cavalcade Cup 100 on Saturday, Sept. 12.

The full slate of Stirling Lubricants Modified Series events at Weedsport will also include the $7,500 to win Super DIRTcar Series Heroes Remembered 100 on Monday, May 25 and the $12,020 to win Super DIRTcar Series Hall of Fame 100 on Sunday, July 26.

“Thanks to our great partnership with Stirling Lubricants, distributor of Champion Racing Oil, we have rebranded our modified dates into a progressive series of high paying events,” said Weedsport Speedway promoter Jimmy Phelps. “Each of our Super DIRTcar Series events will pay more to win, and more to start, as the intensity of the season builds.

“We hope that intensity will reach a fever pitch at our Cavalcade Cup 100 in September, with an even bigger announcement still to come.”

The Memorial Day Heroes Remembered 100 will pay $500 to take the green flag, with July’s Hall of Fame 100 paying a minimum of $600.

September’s Cavalcade Cup 100 will award a hefty $700 to start.

Stirling Lubricants Modified Series events at Weedsport on June 7, June 14 and Sept. 11 will pay $3,000 to win.

In total, there will be six big-block modified events at Weedsport in 2020, brought to fans by Stirling Lubricants and Champion Racing Oil.

Stirling Lubricants is a leading manufacturer and supplier of specialty industrial, cutting, hydraulic and way oils, as well as a distributor of high-quality major branded lubricants.

Established more than 50 years ago, Stirling Lubricants has become a leading distributor for industrial, machining, agricultural, automotive, construction, trucking, logging, and high performance motorsports lubricants.

“We’re once again excited to be a major sponsor of the series of six Modified events to be held at Weedsport Speedway,” said Stirling Lubricants Vice President of Marketing Scott Baubie. “Stirling Lubricants is a 50-year old company that likes to help support racers and speedways by sponsoring events.”