Royals’ Duffy, Merrifield reflect on playing through height of the COVID-19 pandemic
In typical circumstances, left-hander Danny Duffy might single-handedly lighten the mood of the entire Kansas City Royals clubhouse with his mixture of lightheartedness, sense of humor and a generally affable nature.
Whether pumping early 2000s punk rock into the clubhouse sound system and encouraging teammates to sing along before his start or grabbing a football for an overly exaggerated imitation of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott’s hip warm-up on the field, Duffy’s playful demeanor is hard to ignore.
But the 2020 pandemic edition of the Major League Baseball season existed in an altered environment. The lack of fans and presence of cardboard cutouts and artificial crowd noise were the most apparent differences, but other alterations were felt by those in uniform and in closest proximity to the diamond.
“At the field, it was different,” Duffy said. “I totally understand, with the protocols, but there were instances where you’re the only guy in the clubhouse and you don’t have a mask on for five seconds and someone is coming to tell you to put your mask on who is not an employee of the team.”
Duffy’s remarks convey how familiar settings took on a foreign feeling due to health and safety protocols.
Now, a year after the COVID-19 coronavirus halted and then temporarily altered the way major sports leagues operated, MLB sits on the verge of becoming the first of the major North American sports leagues to begin a second season during the ongoing pandemic.
The NBA and NHL were already well into their seasons last year when COVID put sports on pause. The NFL has held one season under pandemic protocols.
“We need to be more focused on wearing masks as much as we can, as much as we remember,” Duffy said. “Just make it a part of us. I think that was the biggest adjustment. It’s not normal, but I think it’s crucial that we all kind of just kind of treat the mask as a part of our face for a while. It’s really annoying, but it’s very important. That was the biggest adjustment for me.
“I went to a grocery store twice last year and was extremely careful. I had to go get food, and I was worried about that kind of stuff. I don’t think that even when the world is normal again that that’s going to something we can just jump right back into.”
Even with fans set to return to ballparks this season, MLB has strict rules in place governing what MLB personnel can and can’t do.
MLB players, coaches and essential staff required to be in close contact with players will be prohibited from attending indoor gatherings of 10 or more people, or visiting indoor restaurants, bars and lounges, gyms, entertainment venues, casinos and any other activity barred by state or local governments. That restriction will be in effect from the start of spring training through the regular season and the postseason.
They won’t be allowed to leave team hotels during road trips for anything other than taking part in team activities at the club facility or ballpark, for medical reasons, outdoor walks/exercise or approved outdoor dining.
And they’re not allowed to meet with anyone aside from the team’s traveling party, at the team hotel or elsewhere, other than members of their household and/or family members.
No escape
All-Star outfielder Whit Merrifield described the most challenging part of playing a season during a pandemic as, “almost feeling like a prisoner in the hotel and at home.”
As dedicated as players were to their sport and to being back on the field, the discipline required to make it through the season didn’t always come seamlessly.
Last year, the Royals endured a string of COVID-19 cases at the start of and during spring training 2.0/summer camp.
They announced eight separate cases, including infections that sidelined All-Star catcher Salvador Perez, infielder/outfielder Hunter Dozier, starting pitchers Brad Keller and Jakob Junis and first baseman Ryan O’Hearn, among others.
During last season, coronavirus-related miscues and misfortunes were magnified as the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals went extended periods without playing games due to outbreaks within their teams. Those outbreaks, in turn, called into question the very viability of the MLB season.
Cleveland Indians pitchers Zach Plesac and Mike Clevinger (now with the San Diego Padres) drew criticism and were eventually isolated from their team for violating protocols: leaving the team’s hotel in Chicago to meet with friends after a game against the White Sox.
“Baseball is such a grueling, mentally and physically, game that when you’re going through 20 games in a row or whatever or you’re going through, a skid, you want to be able to go out to dinner, go do something, go have a beer, go just forget about baseball for a minute,” Merrifield said. “Last year, it was like the game is over and you have to get on the bus, go back to your hotel and sit there, sit in your hotel room by yourself and think about the game. There’s nothing else to do.
“Doing that over and over again, I think, really wore on people. I know it’s going to be sort of similar to that early on, but we feel this year is a little different because there’s almost like a light at the end of the tunnel with the way the virus is progressing with the vaccines coming out. There’s hope that by maybe the summertime things will sort of be back to normal for us.”
A temporary new normal
For most of last season, Royals general manager Dayton Moore kept a running tally of how much time he spent in the clubhouse or in close contact with players or staff out of respect for the protocols.
Under normal circumstances, Moore would interact with players and coaches both at home and on the road. He and manager Mike Matheny, who was in his first season at the helm last year, would’ve met regularly.
“It’s challenging for me personally because we like the relationship,” Moore said of the front office experience. “We like to be engaged with our players. We like to be very visible with our players. So I’m thankful that with the protocols it’s going to allow us to continue to do some of that, although we’re conscious of social distancing.”
Moore and Matheny spoke almost daily on the phone last season, and this spring Moore said they’ve had one-on-one sitdowns while masked and separated by roughly 15 feet in a conference room.
“We’re communicating very well multiple times a day on many issues,” Moore said. “We’re not having a lot of the face-to-face contact and discussions during the workouts, but nonetheless we’re getting everything we need to accomplish.”
Even through last season’s restrictions, protocols and extra steps taken in attempt to prevent infections and spread, Matheny sought to maintain some perspective. He said the team’s support staff and personnel figured out ways to make things as easy as possible for the players and coaches alike.
“The challenges were really not that big a deal to me,” Matheny said. “It’s a drag when it got hot and having a face covering on. It felt like you were smothering yourself, but everyone all over the world is doing that. So I just never saw it being that big a deal.”
Matheny stressed the importance of not falling into the “whining trap,” and realizing that players and coaches were “being catered to” with the restrictions and protocols in place.
He reminded himself and his team that none of them were sure they’d be able to have a season. The protocols made it possible for them to play.
“It was radically different, but I think it was all mindset,” Matheny said. “We went into this thing knowing it wasn’t going to be (the same). … I want to play. You guys say you want to play. Here’s the chance to go prove it. We’ve just got to keep telling ourselves is this is the only way we can do this.”
This story was originally published March 12, 2021 at 11:21 AM with the headline "Royals’ Duffy, Merrifield reflect on playing through height of the COVID-19 pandemic."
