MLB Announce Players Will Wait For Their Turn To Get COVID-19 Vaccinations

The MLB released a statement affirming that they will not skip lines to get COVID-19 vaccinations for players. The baseball league said, “As the NBA, Major League Baseball and its clubs will work with public health authorities on issues related to the availability and timing of vaccinations for players and other employees.” The second part of the statement was their stance is that “vaccinations will only be made available to players when public health officials deem it appropriate.”

Earlier this month, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said, “We will wait our turn to get the vaccine.”

While this is the appropriate action for the baseball league to take, there will be certain obstacles ahead of it. One complication is whether the vast majority of MLB players, who are young and healthy, would receive the vaccinations ahead of other young individuals.

Another issue is the ongoing labor dispute between the MLB and the MLBPA. The league wants to delay the 2021 season until fans are allowed in stadiums again. The MLPA is fighting against this as they want the full season to be played out along with full pay. Negotiations between the two are currently on-going.