Club vaccine access may arrive soon
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The Astros are hoping their players and staff will have access to the COVID-19 vaccine by April 7, when they’re scheduled to return home to Houston following a six-game season-opening road trip.
General manager James Click said Wednesday the club is in ongoing communication with Houston Methodist, the team’s official health care provider, to determine a best method for access to the inoculation for players and staff.
“We’re hoping that it will be available some time around then,” Click said. “Again, making sure we don’t cut the line in any way, shape or form. We obviously played 60 games and more last year with the virus in similar levels throughout the country. If we follow the PPE and mask protocols and mandates, we’re sure our guys will be safe.”
Earlier this week, Toronto Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro told The Athletic his club “got fairly good information that the vaccine will be accessible to our players and other major league teams in the next two to three weeks or month.”
All Texans 16 and older will be eligible for the vaccine beginning Monday, when the Astros will play their final Grapefruit League game in West Palm Beach. Houston opens the season April 1 at Oakland against the A’s but will remain in Florida before flying there.
Major League Baseball has a mandatory off day on March 31 for all clubs, so the Astros will work out on the morning of March 30 before leaving for California.
Though vaccinations are deemed “voluntary” for all players, MLB and its players association “will strongly encourage all players to undergo vaccinations at the appropriate time,” according to the league’s operations manual. The manual also promises a relaxation of health and safety protocols if the league sees a sufficient number of immunizations.
“We’re not looking for any kind of special treatment, certainly, but Houston Methodist is a tremendous medical facility, and we’ve benefitted from our partnership with them,” Click said. “If it’s appropriate, we will work with them to try to provide this to our players and staff.”
Click said conversations within the clubhouse regarding the vaccine are ongoing and player-led, mostly by pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. and catcher Martin Maldonado. McCullers is the team’s player representative to the union. McCullers said Wednesday that if vaccines are available to the team in April, “a lot of guys are interested.”
Manager Dusty Baker, 71, received both doses of the vaccine before arriving in spring training last month.
“It’s safety first here,” McCullers said. “We want guys to do what they’re comfortable doing. If we are able to be vaccinated and guys feel comfortable doing that, we support them. If guys feel like they don’t want to do that, we support them.”
“Our guys have done such a great job of being responsible, proactive and continuing to make sure we have a safe environment, and guys are following guidelines. We’ve done a fabulous job. We’ll see if (vaccines) are available to us. Everyone will have to make their own decision.”
Struggling OF Souza released
The Astros are releasing outfielder Steven Souza Jr., a person with knowledge of the team’s plans told the Chronicle, offering some clarity into the ongoing battle for the fourth outfield spot.
The Astros signed Souza to a minor league contract this winter in hopes of providing competition for their depleted outfield. The 31-year-old veteran struggled mightily in Grapefruit League play, striking out 13 times in 22 at-bats. He had only two hits: a bunt single and a home run. After a strikeout last week, Souza broke his bat over his knee in disgust upon reaching the dugout.
Souza has in 482 major league games across a six-year career. He overlapped with Astros general manager James Click for three seasons in Tampa Bay, including a 30-homer campaign in 2017.
With the Arizona Diamondbacks in March 2019, Souza suffered a grisly leg injury that kept him out of the entire season. He returned for a brief stint with the Chicago Cubs during the shortened 2020 season but proclaimed himself fully healthy upon arrival to West Palm Beach.
Souza’s departure leaves Jose Siri and Chas McCormick in competition for the team’s opening-day roster. McCormick’s place on the 40-man roster gives him an inherent advantage over Siri, a former top prospect who is in camp as a non-roster invitee.
Siri has outperformed McCormick in Grapefruit League games, but the Astros’ 40-man roster crunch still leaves McCormick as the most likely candidate to break camp with the team.