A 24-year-old man presents to the emergency department with fever and chills for the past 2 days. He also reports feeling fatigued and experiencing shortness of breath with minimal exertion. On physical exam, the patient is found to have a temperature of 102.5°F, tachycardia, and tachypnea. Laboratory tests show a white blood cell count of 23,000/µL with 85% neutrophils, 8% lymphocytes, and 7% monocytes. Hemoglobin level is 9 g/dL, and platelet count is 120,000/µL. What is the significance of the high neutrophil count and low hemoglobin level?