Yankees's Clint Frazier lauded for wearing mask on field, fans say America should 'suck it up' and wear them too
The growing number of coronavirus cases in the world should be enough for people to understand the importance of wearing a mask in order to avoid contracting and spreading the virus. However, a lot of people are still not paying heed to this need-of-the-hour measure and roaming about casually without face protection. But it is always a pleasure to see a public figure emphasizing on this important issue – only because they, to an extent, can influence their fans and the public with their opinion. One such public figure is New York Yankees outfielder Clint Frazier. Although the athlete’s decision to wear a mask while playing was met with equal measure of praise and criticism, Frazier remained unaffected.
Frazier was widely praised for saying he would wear a mask during games throughout the regular season in an attempt to protect himself as well as those around him. As per an ESPN report, he said, "I got a lot of positive feedback. I got a lot of negative feedback, as well, just from wearing the mask. A lot of people have their own opinions. I got called a sheep by some people, but it's all good." The 25-year-old further emphasized the importance of wearing a mask and taking coronavirus seriously. He said, "With the situation that we're in, with how fragile this virus is for some people, I'm not really too worried about the negative feedback." Frazier added, "Moving forward, I think it's the right thing to protect myself, others around me and everyone else that everyone goes home to."
The ESPN report also stated that Yankees backup catcher Kyle Higashioka also said this week that he plans to wear a mask while he is catching but not hitting.
Twitterati soon extended their support to the athlete with one posting, "Clint Frazier is wearing a mask playing an actual Major League Baseball game. You can too." Another said, "Clint Frazier just hit a home run wearing a mask but your high school friend on facebook is hypoxic after five minutes in wal-mart."
One user said, "If Clint Frazier can hit bombs with a mask on then you can wear one hanging out on the sidewalk with your friends." Another user tweeted, "If Clint Frazier can step into a MLB batters box with a mask on and do his job you can wear one as you grocery shop for foods high in carbs. Suck it up, America." People didn’t hold back and extended their support by saying, "Clint Frazier hit a two-run bomb into the second deck while wearing a mask, so please shut the f**k up about how you get short of breath when you're waddling through the atherosclerosis aisle at Costco."
Frazier hit a long home run off of Mets pitcher Rick Porcello during the fourth inning of Saturday's game.