Baseball attendance mired in mixed messages
- Tom Rife: Livin' the Team
- March 11, 2021
- 803
Remember when your favorite top-40 radio station used to blare the same message over and over again?
“The hits just keep on comin’!”
Clearly, those words were music to our ears.
But here’s the rub: These days we are getting more than our fair share of mixed messages. And if you’re a sports fan wondering when (or if) you can (or can’t) go to a ball game, the uncertainty is getting more than a little irritating.
Whether it’s a big-league game or one at the local college or high school, the messages are so garbled that no amount of head-scratching seems to be enough.
The Cleveland Indians, for example, have been told they will be allowed to fill Progressive Field to 30% capacity on opening day. So with 122 suites and a seating capacity of 43,545, as many as 13,063 fans could hit the turnstiles come April 5.
The 30% restriction is to be in effect for games through April. The number could change after that, based on whatever future recommendations come out of the office of Gov. Mike DeWine.
Stay tuned to DESPN (DeWine Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) for further developments.
According to the Indians, tickets to games will be sold in pod-style seating in quantities of either two or four tickets to ensure social distancing between eligible groups when fans are seated.
All fans in attendance will be required to wear a CDC-recommended face mask at all times unless they are actively eating or drinking in ticketed seats. (Drinking at an Indians game? Who knew?)
Incidentally, the team has noted that neck gaiters, bandanas and masks with valves are not considered approved face masks.
Not every big-league franchise is nearly as optimistic. When the Indians open their 2021 season in Detroit on April Fool’s Day, only 1,000 Tiger fans will be allowed inside Comerica Park (no foolin’). That stadium can seat 41,083, meaning the 1,000-person limit, set in place by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, is less than 3% of the building’s maximum capacity.
Tigers owner Christopher Ilitch has not-so-boldly said he hopes there will be more than 1,000 fans per game at some point during the 2021 season.
It bears noting that for spring training games now underway in Lakeland, Florida, the Tigers are allowing 2,000 fans per game — about 20% of the 9,777 maximum capacity at Joker Marchant Stadium.
Go figure.
Following their three-game series in Motown, the Indians (no name change yet) return to Cleveland for their home opener on Monday, April 5 against the Kansas City Royals. The contest is part of a five-game homestand against Kansas City and Detroit.
As for opening-day attendance around MLB, somewhere in the middle (in terms of fans, not geography) is Miami. Marlins CEO Derek Jeter has announced there will be 20% capacity to start the season.
As regular-season games go at Marlins Park, built in 2012 on the site of the old Orange Bowl Stadium in Little Havana, you can bet Jeter — any day of the week — would worship bulging butts in 20% of the seats.
The 20% rule may well become the norm around The Bigs on opening day this spring. Fully vaccinated Indians fans lucky enough to snare a ticket should consider themselves fairly fortunate.
Never mind that in a small number of states, it’s back to “business as usual” in the weeks ahead with no regard for suggested CDC guidelines. It should come as no surprise that a place like Texas would adopt such policy. Just look at what Lone Star State goobers selfishly chose to do years ago when it came to building their own power grid, isolated from the rest of the U.S., so as to save money. What a splendid decision that was, eh?
As for attendance at high school baseball and softball games this spring, the scenario at this point should resemble that of fall and winter sports. Tickets are being sold for spring state-tournament action.
And then, of course, there is The College of Wooster, which recently released its spring sports schedules and attendance protocols.
Effective March 13, COW students, faculty, and staff who are part of the college’s regular testing program are welcome to attend home events. Families and other fans cannot attend at this time because “visitors to campus are currently limited to admissions or interviews and other critical campus operations.”
Venue capacity is limited to 30% where applicable unless otherwise indicated. Art Murray Field is the “first come, first served” baseball home of the Fighting Scots. Masking and social distancing is required. “All attendees must show a valid College of Wooster ID and ‘good to go badge’ for entry and/or as requested by the game manager on site.”
Good to go badge?
“The hits just keep on comin’!”