Mariners: 4 takeaways from sweep by the San Diego Padres

2) Delicate balance between the individual versus the team

It is accepted that whether or not someone gets vaccinated against COVID-19 should be a personal choice. However, this does not make the subject matter any less polarizing.

There is a delicate balancing act which comes with any discussion surrounding this topic. In respect of journalism it is — or should — be a case of presenting an objective perspective together with facts and information, in order for the reader to make up their own mind.

Further, professional sports are meant to provide an escapism from the real world. As is often the case though, professional sports reflect society, with recent events surrounding the Mariners offering an example of just this.

On Friday, Seattle announced that pitchers Robert Dugger, Anthony Misiewicz, Drew Steckenrider and Will Vest were all being placed on the injured list. Obviously this was a significant blow for a bullpen which had been the strongest part of the Mariners’ roster so far this season.

The reason for such wholesale roster moves was due to a player testing positive for COVID-19. Out of caution, anyone with close contact to the individual in question also had to go on the IL.

As per league protocol, the Mariners did not reveal which player tested positive, but you can at least narrow this down by a process of elimination. Consider that any of the four players placed on the IL had to remain there for at least seven days, if unvaccinated.

As such, Dugger and Misiewicz were activated after testing negative, with both having received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. In addition, everyone was tested on Friday and Saturday, with no more positive test results.*

This is obviously a huge relief for the Mariners, but concerns remain. They managed to avoid a bigger disaster on this ocassion, but what about in future?

As per a variety of reports, including Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times, less than half of the Mariners players opted to get vaccinated when first offered by the team in mid-April. Even allowing for all the roster moves which have since taken place, they still aren’t close to the 85 percent required to remove some of the more strict COVID-19 health and safety protocols.

Now to be clear, this isn’t just an issue in Seattle. Only 14 of the 30 MLB teams have reached the 85% threshold for being fully vaccinated, with two more due to get there within the next week.

Regardless, our main focus will remain on the Mariners, given that this is the ball club we cover. In this respect there has to be ongoing concern about the future, for a variety of reasons.

Now admittedly, this is the part where we get perilously close to going from being objective to offering an opinion. So again, let us first again stress that the decision to get vaccinated is an individual choice.

At the same time however, this leads to several potential issues. The first, as we’ve already mentioned, is the possibility of future positive tests which could impact the team.

Secondly, while Seattle is below the 85 percent threshold, they remain as one of the (soon to be) 14 teams who are at a disadvantage compared to the rest of the league. A removal of the stricter protocols would mean being able to operate the ball club closer to pre-COVID levels.

This leads to the third and final possible issue, which while speculative is still relevant when you consider human nature. Pure and simple, how is team morale impacted by the apparent 50-50 (give or take) split between those who are for and against being vaccinated?

It is conceivable to imagine at least some resentment among those who chose to be vaccinated. There could well be frustration that certain previous privileges are being withheld, through no fault of their own.

(Servais made a point of not being critical when discussing the situation during a press conference with the media on Friday. At the same time however, his frustration was hard to hide.)

We of course hope that none of these issues come to the forefront. However, it is a delicate time for the organization, especially when combined with their current inability to win consistently.

It is entirely possible the recent COVID-19 scare will convince more players to get vaccinated. This aside, there is nothing else Servais and company can do but keep their fingers crossed.

* Update – Following Sunday’s game, Servais confirmed Kendall Graveman had been placed on the IL for COVID-related reasons. Graveman has been the Mariners’ best reliever this season, having allowed no runs in 16.2 innings.

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