David Price opted out.
That's instantly become the acceptable terminology for a Major League Baseball player telling his team he won't participate in the 60-game 2020 season that opens later this month.
He opted out. According to all the headlines, according to the Dodgers' press release, according to all the related quotes, he opted out:
Yep. Opted out.
He wasn't the only one, either. The Rockies' Ian Desmond, the Diamondbacks' Mike Leake, the Nationals' Ryan Zimmerman, the Braves' Felix Hernandez ... they all opted out, too. The Angels' Mike Trout, arguably the game's greatest player, is publicly mulling opting out himself. Same with the Giants' Buster Posey.
And with each such announcement or pronouncement, it seems there's been an accompanying symphony of sympathy and understanding, from the respective teams, from the media covering those teams and from fellow players:
J.D. Martinez on former teammate David Price opting out of the season:
“I respect his opinion. It’s a scary time right now. I’m sure he’s doing what he thinks is best for his family. You’ve got to respect that. You wish him the best, honestly.”
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) July 5, 2020
If there's been an exception to these, I've yet to uncover one.
Well, welcome to this column. Which most definitely will opt out on that count.
No, I'm not about to bash anyone above. Each has his own reasons, and I'm sure some are deeply personal and legitimate. Also, almost without exception, each has already made massive money in the game and can afford the financial hit. There's a risk/reward component to most decisions we make in life, and these players deemed the risk to be greater. The coronavirus pandemic is making for an extraordinary time in our civilization, so ... whatever.
But man, how about the 99.9999 percent of players who are opting in?
How about hearing it for the Brewers' Christian Yelich, who'll arguably be the game's greatest player in the event Trout opts out?
Because, you know, Yelich will opt in.
"You're going to have guys with different outlooks on this virus," my favorite Serb slugger told Milwaukee reporters yesterday. "Some will be worried. Some aren't. But you have to be respectful of everyone's views and you have to take it upon yourself to take all the precautions, be a good teammate and do the best to your ability."
Yelich will be a good teammate. He signed a nine-year, $255 million contract to commit to the Crew back in March, and he'll honor that this summer. You'd better believe he'll be appreciated by everyone except the pitchers facing him.
And hey, how about hearing it for the local club?
As far as we can discern to date, the Pirates are all still opting in.
Socrates Brito, a bubble outfielder, and Blake Cederlind, a prospect reliever, allowed the team to share their names publicly yesterday as having the virus. They're being properly quarantined, and here's hoping for the best for both, as well as all those with whom they'd come in contact.
But as far as opting out vs. opting in ... so far, they're batting 1.000. And Derek Shelton, while sounding all the requisite respectful tones, is strongly suggesting it'll stay that way.
"We're here to work," he spoke upon the opening of the team's summer camp this past weekend at PNC Park.
So how about hearing it for Josh Bell?
He had much moving stuff to say over the past weekend, on both baseball and life, but nothing caught my ear quite like this about the new environment at work: "We’re wearing our masks inside at all times. A couple guys are wearing it during the workdays. It’s a scenario where the healthiest team is probably going to win this year. The team that has the least amount of guys going down, needing to take a 10-day quarantine, is going to have their premier players on the field every night. That’s the most important thing. That’s what we’re going to fight for. That’s what we’re going to talk about day in, day out. If we can stay healthy, we have a real, real shot at this thing, and I’m definitely excited to fight for that opportunity every day."
Hm. 'Excited to fight.'
To stay healthy. To stay on the field. Primarily for the purpose of supporting each other and, in turn, winning.
How about hearing it for Joe Musgrove?
He's the team's unquestioned leader at this point, and he made it damned clear that the biggest part of that role in 2020 will be precisely what Bell referenced: “It’s not going to be normal. It’s going to suck a little bit. But we're putting our priority on showing up and doing what we’re told. If you have to wear masks, you have to wear masks. If you have to be separated, you have to be separated. We’re here to work. We’re here to do a job. Whatever the guidelines are that we have to meet, we’re going to meet ‘em. Our focus is to get better at baseball every day, not bitch and complain about all the rules we have to follow. That’s been our main priority, just focusing on getting our job done.”
Hm. 'Getting our job done.'
Like millions and millions of other Americans in all walks of life. They're young, they're hungry, and they've yet to achieve their first great paydays, unlike those employed by their economically privileged counterparts in New York, Boston, Los Angeles and so forth.
I'm not making light of the broader scene. Far from it. We've lost more than 130,000 Americans to coronavirus this year. We're in the midst of a case spike in 38 states. Right here in Allegheny County, we're still taking food and drinks out of restaurants and bars, still wearing masks in public, still socially distancing and, yeah, still worrying.
Baseball's at least a little different. Of the 3,185 players and staffers put through coronavirus tests leading into these camps, only 38 showed positive. That's 1.2 percent, many times lower than the CDC's current 7.5 percent rate for the country as a whole. And now that the players are under far tighter wraps, that'll likely keep such figures manageable.
Still, there's a risk. The most ominous spikes of any states currently are in California, Arizona and Florida, home to 10 major-league franchises. And in baseball, unlike all other sports, teams will use their home parks and travel to the visitors' parks. The Pirates will open July 24 in St. Louis, meaning they'll fly, they'll bus, they'll stay in a hotel, and they'll be in someone else's stadium. Just as often as they're here.
They seem to be invested in making the best of it.
Maybe even the very best of it, if other teams' rich and famous players keep opting for the opposite approach.
