Philadelphia Phillies: Girardi says players aren’t considering opting out
By David Esser
According to Joe Girardi, nobody on the Philadelphia Phillies is considering opting out.
In the last week or so, a handful of both MLB and NFL players have begun opting out of their respective seasons due to COVID-19 concerns. Notable names included Marquise Goodwin of the Philadelphia Eagles, Yoenis Cespedes of the New York Mets, and former Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Francisco Liriano.
For starters, opting out right now is completely understandable. Goodwin had concerns regarding his newborn’s health, and Liriano decided to sit out just a few days into the season (the Miami outbreak may have played a role in his decision making).
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Liriano was a surprise cut for the Phillies, as a lot of people felt he could have played a key role in an overall weak Phillies bullpen. However, now that we know he won’t be participating in 2020, that decision to release him looks a bit more understandable.
Phillies manager Joe Girardi was asked over the weekend if anyone else on the Phillies was considering opting out, especially following all the Marlins cases. Girardi had this to say about the situation:
“No, that has not happened in our clubhouse. The chatter I hear is guys saying, ‘Let’s go, we’re ready to go, let’s go.’ That’s the chatter I’ve heard so far. And again, if a player chooses to opt out, I fully support him because playing this game is hard enough and if your mind has concerns in other places, it’s really gonna be hard.”
Despite the major health concerns that are prevalent, the Phillies appear to still be locked in and focused on playing baseball in 2020. A majority of the teams around the MLB have been unaffected by the virus, so hopefully things will return to normalcy sooner rather than later if everyone can follow the protocols.
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The Phillies will travel up to New York to take on the red hot Yankees this week, in what will surely be a home run filled affair. Aaron Judge has been hitting bombs left and right, and Jake Arrieta and Zach Eflin will undoubtedly have their work cut out for them early in this series.