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Major League Baseball players without the coronavirus vaccine will not be allowed to enter Canada to play games against the Toronto Blue Jays due to the country’s restrictions, and they will not be paid while the team is abroad as part of the sport’s new effort. contract.
Current Canadian border restrictions do not allow unvaccinated foreign visitors to enter the country without specific exemptions. And a special status for unvaccinated athletes that is granted and allowed by the Canadian government. cross last year, ended in January.
as part of recently signed collective agreement To allow the 2022 season to kick off, MLB and the player association have agreed that players who are unable to enter Canada due to their vaccination status will be placed on the league’s limited list, with no salary and length of service by league, temporarily. (The length of service is what determines players’ eligibility for salary arbitration and free agency.)
“It’s a concern,” union president Tony Clark said on Friday. “As everyone knows, we appreciate and respect decisions made, especially regarding player health and community health.”
Due to the new policy, some players may have to sit in key games against the Blue Jays, who opened the season at their home at Rogers Center on April 8.
Late last season, some of MLB’s 30 teams had not reached the 85 percent full vaccination threshold, allowing for the relaxation of league pandemic restrictions. The Boston Red Sox, which suffered a major virus outbreak last season, were just one of 10 teams that failed to pass the post-season vaccination mark last season.
Division rival and Blue Jays frequent rivals Yankees manager Aaron Boone told reporters on Sunday that he was concerned that his players might not be able to play in Canada. Fla., where the team hosted spring training. “We still have at least a couple of guys who haven’t been vaccinated,” he told reporters in Tampa.
On the contrary initial resistance from many players Over the past year, vaccination numbers have increased steadily in MLB As of the end of last season, approximately 84 percent of all players and designated personnel have been fully vaccinated. Some team managers were clearly frustrated by their players’ reluctance to get vaccinated.
Vaccination rates are significantly higher in other professional leagues such as the NBA and NHL, both of which have Canadian-based teams.
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