Canada Likely to Lift Vaccine Mandates for MLB Playoffs

September 21st, 2022 11:21 AM

Hell may have frozen over.

Reports suggest that Canada will likely drop its vaccine requirements for people entering the country by the end of the month. Should this become official, it will undoubtedly be great news for unvaccinated athletes that, to this point, have been prevented from playing games in Canada.

Currently, anyone seeking to enter Canada must have received at least one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine or a second dose of another COVID-19 vaccine no less than 14 days before entering the country. 

Related: Quebec City Health Commish Says City Is Forcibly 'Isolating Uncooperative' People Who’ve Tested Positive for COVID19

The news comes just over two weeks before the start of the the MLB playoffs, which the Toronto Blue Jays will likely qualify for (they are currently the top wild card spot in the American League and have a 7.5-game cushion from losing a playoff berth with only 14 games left in the season). Naturally, any team that has to face Toronto with its season on the line would rightly be furious if the mandate would force a star player to miss one or multiple games, so Canada is doing its best to stay ahead of that scenario.

The mandate would also be welcome news to Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving and Detroit Red Wings forward Tyler Bertuzzi, both of whom remained unvaccinated during their seasons despite their respective leagues having mandates for its personnel.