Blue Jays' Whit Merrifield: Joining new team Thursday
Merrifield is expected to join the Blue Jays on Thursday for a series in Minneapolis, but his vaccination status and ability to enter Canada for the team's next homestand remains unclear, Gregor Chisholm of The Toronto Star reports. "Obviously we know he wasn't there in Toronto, but totally up to him [whether he gets vaccinated] and I'm sure he's had conversations with his family and other people," Jays manager John Schneider said Wednesday. "We're leaving that decision up to him."
The former Royal missed a series in Toronto just before the All-Star break due to his inability to cross the border, but Merrifield made comments afterward suggesting he would get vaccinated if he were playing for a team in playoff contention. That's now the case after he was dealt to the Jays at the trade deadline, but it remains to be seen if he's changed his mind about getting vaccinated. Merrifield has a career-low .642 OPS through 95 games this season, but a move to a competitive team and having a more potent offense around him could spark his bat to life down the stretch.
