Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto has drawn a hard line in the sand. He&#8217;s not going to let Canada tell him what to do.

The veteran will be missing the Phillies&#8217; two-game series against the Jays on Tuesday and Wednesday, because he isn&#8217;t vaccinated against COVID-19.
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J.T. Realmuto said he consulted with doctors he knew and decided he did not need a COVID vaccine. He will forfeit close to $260,000. &quot;I&#39;m not going to let Canada tell me what I do and don&#39;t put in my body for a little bit of money,&quot; Realmuto said. &quot;It&#39;s just not worth it.&quot;
&mdash; Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattGelb/status/1546688712091881472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 12, 2022</a></blockquote>
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J.T. Realmuto on not being able to join the Phillies in Toronto due to his vaccination status: <a href="https://t.co/7suM66OYaB">pic.twitter.com/7suM66OYaB</a>
&mdash; NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBCSPhilly/status/1546687346678145025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 12, 2022</a></blockquote>
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&#8220;I&#8217;m not going to let Canada tell me what I do and don&#8217;t put in my body for a little bit of money,&#8221; Realmuto said. &#8220;It&#8217;s just not worth it.&#8221;
Realmuto, as well as teammate 3B Alec Bohm, and starters Aaron Nola and Kyle Gibson. He was questioned by reporters Monday night after the Phillies dropped a 6-1 decision to the St. Louis Cardinals.
Consistently, we&#8217;ve heard the same ol&#8217; narrative that the Toronto Blue Jays are at some kind of advantage through teams&#8217; inabilities to bring unvaccinated players to play at Rogers Centre. But truth be told, it&#8217;s a two-way street. The U.S. still doesn&#8217;t allow unvaccinated people into their country.
Realmuto is one of the Phillies better players. He&#8217;s been consistently hitting fifth in the lineup and is slashing .236/.310/.369 with seven dingers on the season
The Phillies are going with a bullpen game Tuesday to kick off a quick, two-game series.
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Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at<a href="http://www.twitter.com/zjlaing"> @zjlaing</a>, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.
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Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto has drawn a hard line in the sand. He's not going to let Canada tell him what to do.



The veteran will be missing the Phillies' two-game series against the Jays on Tuesday and Wednesday, because he isn't vaccinated against COVID-19.

https://twitter.com/MattGelb/status/1546688712091881472

https://twitter.com/NBCSPhilly/status/1546687346678145025

"I'm not going to let Canada tell me what I do and don't put in my body for a little bit of money," Realmuto said. "It's just not worth it."

Realmuto, as well as teammate 3B Alec Bohm, and starters Aaron Nola and Kyle Gibson. He was questioned by reporters Monday night after the Phillies dropped a 6-1 decision to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Consistently, we've heard the same ol' narrative that the Toronto Blue Jays are at some kind of advantage through teams' inabilities to bring unvaccinated players to play at Rogers Centre. But truth be told, it's a two-way street. The U.S. still doesn't allow unvaccinated people into their country.

Realmuto is one of the Phillies better players. He's been consistently hitting fifth in the lineup and is slashing .236/.310/.369 with seven dingers on the season

The Phillies are going with a bullpen game Tuesday to kick off a quick, two-game series.

<hr />

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at<a href="http://www.twitter.com/zjlaing"> @zjlaing</a>, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.

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