St. Louis Cardinals Will Miss Two Unvaccinated All-Stars, Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, Against Blue Jays Due To COVID Restrictions

Two of the St. Louis Cardinals' premier players will not participate in the upcoming two-game series against the Toronto Blue Jays due to COVID restrictions, announced early Sunday by MLB president of baseball operations John Mozeliak.

Cardinals All-Stars Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, along with catcher Austin Romine, will miss the trip to Canada due to the country's mandate for all international visitors to be fully vaccinated (two shots of Pfizer / Moderna, one shot J&J).

As part of protocol, they will also miss out on their game checks.

"Arenado will lose $384,416, Goldschmidt $241,758 and Romine $10,989," relayed ESPN. "All three players will be placed on the restricted list and will not be paid or accrue major league service time for the two games, according to a March agreement between Major League Baseball and the players' association."

The loss of their two Golden Glove basemen and Romine will be a massive void for the Cardinals and will undoubtedly provide Toronto with a favorable advantage facing their shorthanded opponent.

On the season, Arenado is hitting .299, adding 18 home runs (18) and 59 RBIs. As for Goldschmidt. he leads the team in batting average (.333), home runs (22), RBIs (74), on-base percentage (.416) and slugging percentage (.603), as noted in the report. The Cardinals (51-45) trail the Milwaukee Brewers by 1.5 games in the NL Central standings.

OutKick founder Clay Travis responded to Sunday's news: questioning MLB and its players' union for refusing to stick up for unvaccinated players or make the requisite adjustments to allow them to play. He also pointed out the apparent advantage that Toronto continues to gain against visiting teams with unvaccinated players.

"It’s WAY past time for the MLB player’s union to stand up to Canada requiring the covid shot to play in Toronto," he responded. "If the Blue Jays make the playoffs they should either abandon the covid requirement or have to play all games in the United States."

He also called the lack of response by the union "pathetic."

"The fact that the MLB player’s union isn’t standing up for players already is pathetic," Clay tweeted. "The Blue Jays are gaining a competitive advantage for a covid shot requirement that provides zero benefit and actually puts player health at risk."

Clay added, "I salute players who have been brave enough to refuse to get the covid shot, but the fact that the MLB player’s union is allowing this to occur is indefensible. Players are being banned from work for making a completely rational & legitimate health decision."

The series' first game kicks off on Tuesday (July 26), with the series wrapping Wednesday.