Malcolm Henry
Well, this is not the sidestep that I expected when MLB fired back up… and as an owner of Aaron Judge in multiple fantasy baseball leagues… this is not the news that I wanted to read.
Actually, it is not news. It is conjecture. But it is logical conjecture.
Aaron Judge plays baseball, mostly, in New York City. New York City has a vax mandate.
Is Judge vaccinated? I have no idea…. he certainly did not clear it up.
“I’m still focused on just getting to the first game of spring training,” Judge said today from the team’s Florida training complex. “So I think we’ll cross that bridge after the time comes. But right now, so many things could change. So I’m not really too worried about that right now.”
That is certainly not a “I’m vaxx’d so no worries.”
Judge, and every other Yankee or Met, is subject to the rules that have sidelined Brooklyn Nets star Kyrie Irving due to the city’s “private employer mandate” that went into effect Dec. 27.
It is completely illogical that Judge could conceivably sit in the stands, hang out with his teammates, and interact with fans during a game… but, he can not be in the lineup.
#Science!
The city’s employer mandate left out any nuance (or logic) and is the same across the board, not differentiating whether it’s a sports team playing indoors or outdoors.
More #Science!
For its part, the Yankees released a statement that indicated team president Randy Levine was “working with city hall and all other appropriate officials on this matter.”
“We will have no further comment,” it concluded.
Judge has mashed since he arrived in the bigs — and has continued so long as he has been healthy. He is a three-time All-Star and hit .287 with 39 homers last season — finishing fourth in AL MVP balloting.
It will also impact his standing to play against AL East rivals, Toronto.
Unvaccinated players for the Yankees could have to sit out nine games scheduled in Toronto against the Blue Jays. The Canadian government currently requires a person to have received a second vaccine dose — or one dose of Johnson & Johnson — at least 14 days prior to entry into its country, despite all of the data contrary to any of those requirements.
