An unvaccinated Major League Baseball player must now choose to get the COVID-19 vaccine or not play.
Two-time All-Star second baseman and outfielder Whit Merrifield was traded from the Kansas City Royals to the Toronto Blue Jays minutes before the trade deadline Tuesday.
While still a member of the Royals, Merrifield sat out a recent trip to Toronto due to his vaccination status. However, he will now be required to get the vaccine if he wants to play any games in Canada down the stretch.
“We’ll let him work through that with his family,” Blue Jays General Manager Ross Atkins told ESPN, declining to comment further on the matter. “We felt like we made a very good team better today.”
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When previously asked about his decision not to get the vaccine and how it has prevented him from playing in Canada, Merrifield made many Kansas City fans upset by saying, “Something happens and I happen to get on a team that has a chance to go play in Canada in the postseason, maybe that changes.”
The Blue Jays hold a four-game lead over Tampa Bay for the American League’s top wild-card spot.
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While Merrifield has hit just .240 with 30 extra-base hits and 15 stolen bases in 95 games this season, he has been dependable, playing 553 games straight prior to a toe injury last month.
Last season, Merrifield led the American League with 42 doubles.
