Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado will not be able to play in Toronto. According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, both All-Stars will miss the St. Louis Cardinals‘ two-game road series against the Toronto Blue Jays due to their vaccination status. Canada has restrictions on travellers who are not vaccinated against COVID-19. Catcher Austin Romine will also not be joining the Cardinals on the road for the same reason. However, pitcher Johan Oviedo has an expired passport.
All-Star infielders Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt and catcher Austin Romine will not make the trip to Toronto with the team due to Canada’s vaccination rules, Mozeliak tells local media on Zoom.
Johan Oviedo has an expired passport and will not be able to travel.
— Derrick Goold (@dgoold) July 24, 2022
By missing the two games, Goldschmidt and Arenado will forfeit $285,714 and $364,615. Romine will forfeit $10,989. The three players who will take over for the series are catcher Ivan Herrera, outfielder Conner Capel, and utility man Cory Spangenberg. Goldschmidt and Arenado are the two biggest names who will miss a series in Toronto due to their vaccination status. Other All-Stars to miss a Blue Jays series include J.T. Realmuto and Andrew Benintendi, one of 10 Kansas City Royals who couldn’t play north of the border.
St. Louis will have to play against a playoff-calibre team without their two best players. Goldschmidt and Arenado have compiled 40 home runs, 133 RBIs and 1.019 and .897 OPS, respectively. In total, 35 major leaguers have not made the trip due to this issue. Also, on Sunday, the Cardinals placed Steven Matz on the 15-day injured lift with a sprained left knee. The Cardinals enter Sunday second place in the National League Central division behind the Milwaukee Brewers.
Main Image
Players Mentioned:
Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Austin Romine, Johan Oviedo, Ivan Herrera, Conner Capel, Cory Spangenberg, J.T. Realmuto, Andrew Benintendi
