Dewine: Up to 30% of fans at games

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio's major league sports teams beginning their seasons this spring could be allowed up to 30% of fan capacity under approved pandemic plans, Ohio Gov. Mike Dewine said Monday.

Permitting 30% of fans into stadiums would be contingent on social distancing and continued mask wearing, the governor said. He planned a formal announcement Thursday. The expanded fan capacity would apply to the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds along with minor league baseball teams and the Columbus Crew and FC Cincinnati major league soccer clubs.

"We can do that if everyone is masked," Dewine said, adding that the state has learned a lot from the experience of maskwearing in schools. "Kids have been relatively close together and yet we've not seen the spread in classrooms," he said.

These plans could change if the coronavirus variant becomes dominant in Ohio by the end of next month, Dewine cautioned.

Not every team plans to allow that many fans. Minor league baseball's Toledo Mud Hens announced Friday that the club will allow 1,500 fans per game -roughly 15% of the 10,300 seats at Fifth Third Field.

The Mud Hens plan to open at home on April 6 after seeing their entire 2020 season canceled. Other teams have yet to announce specific plans. Dewine said he's had extensive conversations with the Reds and Indians.

For Cleveland, 30% could mean as many as 10,000 fans in the city's downtown ballpark, which holds more than 35,000.

Also Monday, Dewine said that as the number of cases plummet in nursing homes, visitation could be expanded soon. In addition, the governor has written to long-term care facilities reminding them to frequently check their county's positivity rates, which play a role in visitation rules.