Royals' Whit Merrifield explains why he didn't receive COVID-19 vaccine: 'Didn't think the risk was worth it'

The Kansas City Royals will be without 10 players over the next four games as they take on the Toronto Blue Jays in Canada.

It's a massive loss for the Royals, who are already the worst team in the American League Central and will now be without several key players, including Whit Merrifield and outfielder Andrew Benintendi.

The Royals don't have a choice but to go to Toronto without these 10 players, though, because Canada's COVID-19 policy requires all who enter the country to be vaccinated.

"At the end of the day, it's their choice," Royals president of baseball operations Dayton Moore said, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan and The Associated Press. "It's what they decide to do. And we've always been an organization that promotes and encourages individual choices. Unfortunately, some of this affects the team."

For his part, Merrifield wasn't afraid to back up his stance. In fact, he went as far as to divulge that he had a college friend of his die of COVID-19 last fall.

"So it’s something that I’ve taken seriously,” Merrifield said, according to Nathan Han and Pete Grathoff of The Kansas City Star.

Still, even the death of a close friend didn't convince Merrifield to get vaccinated.

“Talking to people, I feel that the vaccine initially — what it was supposed to do, it’s not doing it — and if it was doing what it was supposed to do, stopping the spread of COVID — I would probably have a little more willingness to take it," he said.

“But it’s not doing that, and I don’t feel like COVID is a threat to me. So it was a choice I made when talking to my family, talking to my wife. Didn’t think the risk was worth it, honestly.”