New York Mets third baseman J.D. Davis Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports

Mets 3B J.D. Davis unsure if he'll get COVID-19 vaccine

By Zac Wassink | Last updated Apr 2, 2021 1:46 PM ET

The New York Mets had their entire regular-season opening series versus the Washington Nationals postponed due to fears that the Nationals may be dealing with a "major" COVID-19 outbreak. That hasn't caused Mets third baseman J.D. Davis to begin counting down the days until he can be vaccinated against the coronavirus.

J.D. Davis says he doesn't know if he will get the COVID-19 vaccine. Says he hasn't really thought about it.

The Mets have privately surveyed players over the past couple of days to get a head count and see if they can pass the 85% threshold that will relax their protocols.
— Deesha (@DeeshaThosar) April 2, 2021

J.D. Davis said he hasn't thought about whether he'll get a COVID-19 vaccine.

"It's a personal preference and everybody has their own choice of doing so," he said, noting that he wants to be sensitive to those who have struggled with/died from the disease.
— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) April 2, 2021

Reports emerged earlier in the week that MLB plans to relax COVID-19 health and safety guidelines for clubs with at least 85% of Tier 1 players vaccinated. Cardinals manager Mike Shildt initially admitted he wasn't sure his club would hit the 85% mark due to players potentially avoiding available vaccines.

As Zachary Silver of the official MLB website noted, the Cardinals reached 85% by Wednesday night.

Per Newsday's Tim Healey, Davis and Mets manager Luis Rojas added:

Regarding MLB's incentive to get vaccinated — relaxed protocols of 85% of the team gets it — Davis said the Mets are a tight-knit group and focused on baseball.

"Guys aren’t really getting the itch to go out and mingle," he said.
— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) April 2, 2021

Luis Rojas said the Mets are waiting till they are eligible before getting a COVID-19 vaccine.

(Every member of the organization is eligible beginning Tuesday.)
— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) April 2, 2021

This weekend would have been idea with the resulting layoff, but teams do need to follow the eligibility requirements. Players with qualifying conditions have been eligible much earlier, however. https://t.co/7EarfrPlQp
— David Lennon (@DPLennon) April 2, 2021

Citi Field, home of the Mets, was used as a COVID-19 vaccination site during the offseason.

The Mets will now start the campaign on Monday against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Luis Rojas: "We want to play this weekend, but it's an unfortunate situation happening here. I shared our sympathies with the Nationals. It could happen to anybody. But our point of focus has got to shift to Philly. And that's what we're getting ready for right now."
— Deesha (@DeeshaThosar) April 2, 2021

Zac Wassink

Zac Wassink is a longtime sports news writer and PFWA member who began his career in 2006 and has had his work featured on Yardbarker, MSN, Yahoo Sports and Bleacher Report. He is also a football and futbol aficionado who is probably yelling about Tottenham Hotspur at the moment and who chanted for Matt Harvey to start the ninth inning of Game 5 of the 2015 World Series at Citi Field. You can find him on X at @ZacWassink

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