Cincinnati Reds Planning to Allow Fans into the BallPark?

Team Cincinnati Reds planning to allow fans into the American Ballpark? Yes, you heard that right. The Reds have submitted an official proposal to the Ohio state county & the Major Baseball League that it is planning to allow fans during the game. This will make Reds the first and the only among the Baseball teams to announce allowing fans to attend the games.

The team has already submitted its proposal with regard to the same. The comeback of fans to the Great American ballpark will require permission from the MLB, Hamilton County & the city of Cincinnati. The team has put forth their proposal in front of the supreme authorities. Per the sources, the county & the city have already responded to the proposal positively approving it. However, the Reds are still waiting for MLB and Ohio approval.

How the return of Fans will be implemented?

If the plan gets approved by the two authorities whose decision is still awaiting, fans will return either for the playoffs or in the month of September. The Great American ballpark can accommodate as many as 42,319 fans, yet there is no information on the entire picture of how many fans will be allowed and how this all will be implemented.

After a long halt of almost three months due to the coronavirus outbreak, the MLB season 2020 has begun. But, the MLB was very clear on its stance of not allowing fans in the ballpark as it can increase the chances of COVID-19 spreading.

To cope up with this absence of fans, many of the teams have also placed images & cardboard cutouts of fans and animals in the empty seats. And, some of these seats have also been used as expanded dugouts to implement the social distancing norms successfully. Hamilton County has reported only 60 fresh COVID-19 cases this week, which is a positive sign for getting the approval for fans returning to the ballpark.

What could be the time frame for the approval?

Per an email that was sent to seasonal employees, there was no clear picture of the time frame. However, it said there is going to be a return of a part of the fans in the BallPark. In a recent development, this proposal has also been approved by the country & city — yet this approval has come on the pretext of several conditions. The email that was sent to the seasonal employee read, “this approval could come quickly or be delayed, but we need to be prepared to reopen. Therefore, we need to know if you plan on returning.”

But a final go-ahead on this only after the approval from Ohio & MLB. Last month the Ohio Governor Mike DeWine did not rule out the possibility of fans returning to different sports events this year. However, he has maintained from the very beginning the importance of abiding by the rules of social distancing and wearing masks. In a statement DeWine said, One advantage is that it’s outside. One of the things we’ve learned is that outside is safer than inside. It’s safer when people keep a distance, it’s safer when people wear a mask. It’s certainly not inconceivable that you could have some fans for baseball or football. It’s all a question of distance."

But, there is skepticism given the deteriorating conditions & the increasing number of coronavirus cases and two teams including Marling & Cardinals already affected, the idea of fans returning can also look bizarre. Let’s wait for the reaction from the MLB & Ohio Governor.