Blue Jays happy to hit vaccination threshold

When the Zoom pregame media conference on Tuesday started ahead of the series opener against the White Sox, manager Charlie Montoyo was twirling his Blue Jays branded face mask. He’s worn it in the dugout throughout the season and even during Zoom calls, but since the team met the 85% vaccination threshold on Monday, he can now take it off.

Social distancing and face masks won’t be needed in the Blue Jays' dugout or clubhouse with the easing of COVID-19 protocols. But the team is exceptionally excited about going to restaurants in different cities once again.

"It's not easy to go from the ballpark to the hotel and, we still got to be careful, of course, and everybody's gonna be careful,” Montoyo said. “But it's a lot easier if you want to go eat some place, you don't have to eat at the hotel.”

MLB and the MLBPA agreed to relax certain health and safety protocols contained in the 2021 Operations Manual for fully vaccinated Tier 1 Individuals and for clubs where 85% of their Tier 1 Individuals are fully vaccinated. As part of that memo, players and staff were again strongly encouraged to receive one of the approved COVID-19 vaccines when eligible.

Compared to 2020, when the Blue Jays primarily traveled on the East Coast and had to stay in their respective hotel rooms, this season’s travel schedule brings a new scenery many haven’t seen in a couple of years.

The club will still proceed with caution as things unfold, but the fewer restrictions do bring back the joy of traveling.

"It's a good feeling. Everybody's kind of gradually getting to that point now where things are getting better in that aspect, and for us as a team, you just take a deep breath a little bit and kind of relax,” infielder Joe Panik said.

“I mean, you're always gonna be on guard, especially because this thing ain't over yet, but at the same time it's like, all right, if you want to go to dinner, you don't have to worry about, 'Well, I got to stay in the hotel.'"

Baker’s dozen stretch

Toronto wrapped up a successful five-game homestand that included a sweep of the Marlins and snatching a win from the Astros before the team embarked for the South Side of Chicago. The schedule allowed for an off-day between each series, something the Blue Jays relished.

The three-game set against the American League Central-leading White Sox marked the start of a 13-game stretch where the Blue Jays travel to Chicago, Boston and Baltimore, and play a home set against the Yankees, without a day off. They’ll need to strategize how to utilize players without overexerting them, but also continue to make strides against AL East opponents.

"Who knows what the scale is gonna be every year, and sometimes you’d rather have to play a week and to have a day off, and not have a day off in three days and a day off, but that's just how baseball works,” Montoyo said. “We have to be careful with everybody. Hopefully, our starters go deep.

“Even with [position] players, we have the DH spot to keep guys fresh, because it's gonna be a tough one,” Montoyo said. “Of course we're gonna be playing good teams in 13 days now in June, so now that everybody's got over 200 at-bats so we have to pay attention a lot these next two weeks for sure.”

Managing against legends

From one series to another, Montoyo is becoming familiar with legends.

After he managed against Astros skipper Dusty Baker, where the Blue Jays won one game out of three, Montoyo went head-to-head with Chicago skipper Tony La Russa. Montoyo was 14 years old when La Russa started his managerial career, and the significance of his presence isn’t lost on the Blue Jays skipper.

"Tony was one of those guys, when I first got the job, he approached me and was happy for me," Montoyo said. "He's always been nice to me and it was also pretty cool to go against Dusty Baker. I know the guy's been around the game and he's done a great job. So, yes, it's funny that all of a sudden, it's back-to-back games against guys like that. I think it's pretty cool.”