At World Series, fans with fevers can attend
When fans return to the ballpark for the World Series and National League Championship Series at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, they will not be subject to a temperature check.
Such screenings have become common nationwide in attempts to keep people infected with the coronavirus from entering facilities where they might infect others. In its health and safety protocols, Major League Baseball requires temperature checks for players, coaches, team staffers, media members and stadium cleaning crews. The latter two groups are kept away from players; the MLB announcement of ticket sales said no seats would be available “within 20 feet of where a player can be located on the field, in the dugouts or in the bullpen.”
As the host Texas Rangers put tickets on public sale Tuesday for the World Series and NLCS, they noted that fans could buy in groups of only four, would be seated at least six feet from other groups, and would have to wear masks when not eating or drinking. The Rangers limited sales to 11,500 tickets per game; the new stadium seats 40,300.
However, MLB and the Rangers said there would be no temperature checks. The Rangers said “public health authorities recommend self- screening before you enter public places,” and MLB said fans exhibiting symptoms could be denied entry.
“After reviewing the available technology and consulting with local public health authorities and outside infectious disease experts, MLB and the Rangers made a collective decision not to take the temperatures of fans entering the ballpark,” the league said in a statement. “This decision was based on a number of factors, including the reliability of available technology and the close contact that temperature checks would require.”
The NFL’s Dallas Cowboys play in a stadium across the parking lot from the Rangers’ ballpark. The Cowboys do not check temperatures. They have welcomed more than 20,000 fans to each of their two home games this season.
The scientific community has debated the value of temperature checks. Some people infected with COVID- 19 show no symptoms, and some that do show symptoms do not have a fever. And, while detection of a fever could keep an infected person out of a venue, it would not necessarily mean the fever was caused by COVID- 19.
In an article on the health website Stat, researchers suggested that a scratch- and- sniff test might be more valuable than a temperature check in detecting COVID- 19. Loss of smell “produces a clearer signal and may therefore be a better Covid- catching net than fever,” author Sharon Begley wrote in reviewing a Mayo Clinic study.
James Hamblin, a lecturer at the Yale School of Public Health, wrote in the Atlantic that largescale fever screenings may do more to provide a crowd with the appearance of reassurance than to detect the virus.
“As logical as mass temperature checks may seem,” he wrote, “the practice hasn’t clearly been shown to help contain the coronavirus.”
Missing Oakland
The Oakland Athletics technically were the home team for the first two games of their division series with Houston, but with the coronavirus moving all postseason series to Southern California and Texas beginning this round, they haven’t had home- field advantage.
With games being played in the afternoon and the temperature above 90 degrees both days, Dodger Stadium has played smaller and been a launching pad for both teams. During the later innings, the shadows near home plate and the mound have caused problems for Oakland hitters.
“The nice thing about playing here is you can see the exit velocity of balls hit on the scoreboard. If the ball is hit over 102 [ mph] and the angle is 25 to 30 [ degrees], it is probably going to go out,” shortstop Marcus Semien said. “When you barrel it up it has a chance. It’s hard to take pitches.”
Etc.
The Cleveland Indians expect manager Terry Francona to return for 2021 after he missed 48 games this year because of health reasons. ... Julio Rangel will not return next season as pitching coach for the Rangers.