Orioles 1B Trey Mancini Teams Up With LifeBridge Health To Thank Health Care Workers

With the start of baseball season in limbo, Baltimore Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini has been using his time to thank health care workers. Mancini partnered with the MLB Players Trust and LifeBridge Health to surprise health care workers via Zoom to thank them for all that they’ve done for the nation during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During his battle with colon cancer, Mancini saw all the efforts put forth by health care workers, making this opportunity extra special for the Orioles’ slugger. In addition to this, health care workers are a part of his family.

“My father’s a doctor, my mom was a nurse way back in the day, so I’ve always had a great appreciation for our health care workers, even before this pandemic hit,” Mancini said on Glenn Clark Radio Feb. 9. “I think the last couple years have driven home even further how much they mean to us and our society. They’ve kept us afloat and they’ve gotten us through this. When we all live our day-to-day lives we can forget that sometimes, so I wanted to let them know that we don’t forget it, that they are appreciated.”

Mancini has an intimate understanding of how essential these workers have been. When he underwent treatments for stage 3 colon cancer in 2020, the Orioles’ first baseman was constantly in and out of Johns Hopkins Hospital.

“Obviously with what I went through two years ago with being in the hospital every other week for my chemotherapy treatments during the pandemic, I saw firsthand what it’s like in there and it was crazy,” Mancini said. “So I wanted to show my appreciation and show our appreciation for them.”

When the opportunity came up for Mancini to show his appreciation, it was one that he had to take. The MLB Players Trust, the charitable arm of the Major League Baseball Players Association, created an initiative called “High Fives for Our Healthcare Heroes.”

As part of this campaign, players were paired with a hospital in the city they play in to thank frontline workers and show their appreciation for their efforts throughout this pandemic. The players also surprised each hospital or health network with a $5,000 gift on behalf of the Players Trust.

Mancini was able to surprise several health care workers with LifeBridge Health via Zoom. For Mancini, it was important to convey his thankfulness.

“I just want them to know that they’ve saved countless lives and they’ve been the backbone of our country these past couple of years,” Mancini said. “And I wanted them to know that.”

Mancini also talked about the upcoming season. Though the Orioles finished the 2021 season with a record of 52-110, there is excitement around the club because of some of its top prospects. The Orioles have one of the top farm systems in all of baseball, and a handful of players should make an impact on the big-league team in 2022.

Some of Baltimore’s top prospects are expected to debut at some point this year, including the highly-anticipated battery of Grayson Rodriguez and Adley Rutschman. Mancini mentioned that getting experience in the big leagues is the most important part of young players learning how to succeed, so this season should mark important step in the right direction.

In addition to the prospects, there can still be more moves made by the Orioles before the season kicks off. As of now, the team may look a bit incomplete, but it will most likely look different on Opening Day, whenever that is.

“We have obviously a lot of room for improvement, and I think this is the year that a ton of these dudes are going to be coming up that a lot of fans have been hearing about in the minors,” Mancini said. “And there’s a lot of exciting guys down there and a lot of them are going to be making their debuts this year, which is huge for the future.”

While there are some new faces expected, the ballpark will also have a facelift. The Orioles are pushing back the left-field wall at Camden Yards as much as 26.5 feet as well as increasing the height of the wall from 7 to 12 feet.

This decision was made because the ballpark had allowed an incredibly high number of home runs, particularly to left field, since it opened in 1992. Mancini has hit plenty of home runs to left field at Camden Yards, but this change isn’t much of a concern for him.

“Offensively, it’s nothing you can think about while you’re at the plate or you’re probably done before you go up there,” Mancini said. “As hitters, obviously you don’t want the fences to be moved back, but I understand why they did it on the flip side. Again, that’s something that falls in the category of being beyond your control. So no, it’s nothing that I’m going to think about too much at all.”

For more from Mancini, listen to the full interview here:

Photo Credit: Kenya Allen/PressBox