MLB Network Makes Decision On John Smoltz, Al Leiter After Allegedly Refusing Vaccine

On Tuesday night, the baseball world was surprised by some news regarding two former star MLB pitchers.

Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz and former New York Mets and Yankees star Al Leiter were in the news – and not for the best of reasons. The MLB Network reportedly decided not to let either one in studio moving forward.

According to a report from Andrew Marchand of the New York Post, both Smoltz and Leiter must appear remotely from now on. The decision reportedly came after both allegedly refused to be vaccinated.

Here’s more from the report:

MLBN has made it mandatory for all employees to be vaccinated, with the mandate going into effect Sept. 1. MLBN executives, Smoltz and Leiter made a compromise to keep them on-the-air, but not in the Secaucus studios. They will both appear remotely for the shows.

Smoltz will also still call a Division Series game on site in October. The two are regular in-studio analysts for the network.

Smoltz is a primary part of Fox’s MLB coverage – including during the World Series. Leiter, meanwhile, works for MLB Network and also assists on New York Mets coverage as well.

Both should be able to resume their activities relatively seamlessly, given plenty of sports analysts have worked remotely in the past few months without a hitch.

However, it’s a less than ideal development.

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