Brewers, City of Milwaukee team up to raise vaccine awareness
The Milwaukee Brewers are going public in the push to crush the COVID-19 pandemic.
On Monday, the same day vaccinations were opened to everyone 16 or older in Wisconsin, the team announced it was working with the City of Milwaukee on an effort to promote the availability and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines.
To that end, the Brewers released a public service announcement documenting a team vaccination event that occurred over the weekend at American Family Field.
Players Christian Yelich, Brent Suter, Keston Hiura and Freddy Peralta were among those vaccinated and took part in the PSA.
Meanwhile, the City of Milwaukee has created the hashtag #CRUSHCOVIDMKE to help support the campaign on social media platforms.
“This is basically opening day for the general population,” Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said. “Just as last week was opening day for the Brewers, and they had that great come-from
behind victory, we want to have a great come-from-behind victory in crushing COVID.
“A way for us to do it is to make sure that everybody — everybody — who is eligible gets up and swings the bat. That’s what this is all about. And I think that having the Brewers involved in this sends such a positive message to people of all ages and from all backgrounds.
“It’s really about getting as many people the shot as possible as quickly, as safely and as efficiently as we can.”
Information and links to sign up for vaccinations are available at milwaukee.gov/covidvax.
Most Brewers vaccinated
With COVID-19 still an issue in the major leagues – the Washington Nationals and New York Mets had their seasonopening series postponed after four Nationals players tested positive — the fact the Brewers were able to offer team-wide vaccinations with the help of the Milwaukee Health Department was significant.
President of baseball operations David Stearns, who had to navigate a false positive test on the Brewers last Wednesday, is well aware of the effect vaccinating the team’s players and staff will have moving forward.
Major League Baseball has stated it will relax COVID-19 protocols for teams that have 85% of their players and traveling parties fully vaccinated.
“We’re very mindful that the way we get back to normal, the way we keep our players healthy, the way we keep our community healthy is to get as many people vaccinated as possible,” Stearns said. “That’s true within our organization, our clubhouse and it’s certainly true within our greater community.
“We also recognize that our players are role models. And to the extent that we can serve as an example, to the extent that our players can perhaps encourage others to go get the vaccine, to take the public health measures that our officials are urging us to take, that’s a positive that’s going to benefit our entire community and we’re very cognizant of that.
“Lastly, this benefits the game. The more players and people within our universe that we can get vaccinated, the more assurances that our games are going to go off without a hitch for the entirety of the season, and the faster we get back to potentially full houses at American Family Field, which I know we’re all looking forward to and which will require a very determined vaccination effort on the part of our entire community.”
Stearns wouldn’t specify the percentage of players who have been vaccinated so far but did confirm they received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. That’s key from a timing standpoint in that they should receive immunity faster and won’t have to undergo a second vaccination.
“What I will say is at this point, we have a good chunk of our roster vaccinated,” Stearns said. “This has been an ongoing conversation, an educational effort by our physicians, and really, a very robust dialogue among players. Players taking this issue very seriously and discussing it amongst themselves and then everyone making their own individual choice.
“But I’m very pleased with the initial turnout. This is an effort that is going to be ongoing. It’s not over.
“We’ll continue this in the coming weeks, and I’m very pleased with the opening response.”
It comes as no surprise that Suter, one of the most socially conscious players not only on the Brewers but also in the major leagues, has stepped to the forefront.
“Once I talked with the doctors, it became very evident that not only was this vaccine very effective, but it was also very safe,” Suter said. “I just tried to do my best to encourage teammates to take a look at the research, look at the studies, and I encourage other people too – ‘Hey, this is a safe and effective way to do our part and beat this thing.’
“Wearing the masks, the distancing was trying to curb it. Now, we can beat this thing, and it became a very easy decision for me.”
Suter reveals he had COVID-19
Suter also divulged the previously unknown news that he and his wife were infected with COVID-19 in the offseason. Suter was the first to contract it, from what he believes was a routine trip to the grocery store.
“It was really surprising,” he said. “One morning I woke up a little off, and as the day went on I got really tired and achy, mid-back stiffness. Got tested that next day, came back positive. My wife got tested a couple days later, sure enough I’d given it to her.
“My experience was more like a medium flu that lasted for 10 days. I’ve been sicker in my life, but I’d never been that out of it for that long. My wife was more like a bad cold for 10 days. We both lost our taste and smell for about two weeks, then we got better.
“I had a little pleurisy in my lungs, but that went away and I was able to build up after that. But it was not a fun 10 days.”
The Brewers had a sellout crowd of 11,740 at American Family Field on opening day and near-sellouts both Saturday and Sunday as they welcomed fans back for the first time since September 2019.
City of Milwaukee Health Commissioner Kirsten Johnson gave the Brewers high grades for the opening series with regard to the extensive COVID-19 mitigation plan they had in place.
“We did have inspectors on site on opening day Thursday, and from our perspective the plan that the Brewers submitted to the health department was quite robust and was followed closely,” she said. “We were happy with the way things went down on Thursday, for sure.
“Then I actually had the opportunity to attend the game (Sunday) and was equally impressed. All the protocols were being followed, people were wearing masks, there was social distancing. A couple little tweaks here and there, but I personally felt safe. I was there with my family and we had a great time.
“I feel really good about where the Brewers are in terms of their mitigation efforts.”