Dodgers coach pulling down mask to cough causes social media unrest

Bob Geren went viral for the wrong reasons in an interview during Dodgers-Diamondbacks

Los Angeles fell to the D’Backs despite a monster night for Mookie Betts, but that wasn’t the only storyline from a fairly disappointing night in the desert for the Dodgers.

Los Angeles’ bench coach Bob Geren, who was nice enough to take part in an interview mid-game, had to cough at a fairly inopportune moment. In doing so, he pulled down his mask, and given MLB’s recent struggles with COVID-19, it’s not the public service announcement they were hoping for.

Fair or not, Geren’s lone cough — and decision to pull down the one thing protecting those particles from others — is going to be looked at in a negative light.

Cough in the mask, Bob! That’s what it’s there for!

Look, none of us can pretend we’ve been pristine as it pertains to following COVID-19 protocol. A sanitary lifestyle isn’t something we’re accustomed to, and baseball is arguably the least equipped to handle such things.

https://twitter.com/BoyslnBIue/status/1289731484463411201

Players often spit and even share substances for grip just to get a competitive edge. Heck, pitchers re-use baseballs purely based on the feel.

MLB has done what they can to rid players of these habits, but considering they’re traveling cross-country and interacting with the general public (AKA not in a bubble of sorts), there will always be risk. Geren’s rather minor infraction, and the subsequent freakout on reddit, says more about our current state of living than it does the Dodgers bench coach.