State paves way for A’s, Giants to have fans in stands
The era of cardboard cutouts lining the stands at Bay Area ballparks is coming to an end.
The California Department of Public Health has cleared the way for the Oakland A’s and San Francisco Giants to welcome back fans to the Coliseum and Oracle Park by Opening Day.
Updates to the state’s “Blueprint for a Safer Economy” reopening framework made Friday will allow teams to host fans in their stadiums at limited capacities. Stadiums located in counties in the purple tier will have capacity restricted to 100 fans, while capacity will be limited to 20% of capacity in the red tier, 33% in the orange tier and 67% in the yellow tier.
Alameda County, which is home to the Coliseum, is currently in the state’s purple tier, but A’s president Dave Kaval said the organization has been assured Alameda will soon move into the red tier. The change in tiers will take place prior to April 1, which is when the A’s are scheduled to open the 2021 season at home against the Houston Astros.
If both Alameda and San Francisco counties are in the red tier at the beginning of April, the Giants will be permitted to host around 8,200 fans at Oracle Park while the A’s can have as many as 11,020 fans.
Many fans of the Giants
and A’s have already expressed their delight at Friday’s news on social media, including Matt McCarthy of Sacramento, an A’s fan who tweeted he’s “vaccinated and ready to roll.”
“Happy to play the drums again in Right Field with my fellow bleacher diehards!” A’s fan Bryanne Aler-Ningas said. “Hopefully everyone
that comes back to the Coliseum follows the set guidelines so we can all enjoy this great team and great game again.”
Not everyone is certain they’ll be eager to attend games as soon as Opening Day, including Giants fan Gordon Edgar, a longtime Giants season-ticket holder who has been debating the idea of going to games for months.
“My wife and I will feel comfortable going to games once we are both vaccinated,” Edgar said. “I will be fully vaccinated by Opening Day but, unfortunately, my wife and I are in different tiers so I am not
sure when we can go together.”
The entire 2020 regular season was played in front of empty stadiums, which was challenging for lifelong fans such as Edgar who look at trips to the ballpark as a social outing.
“I miss the MUNI ride to the game, talking to our seat neighbors, betting how long under-dressed tourists will last before they buy sweatshirts or leave and without going to games I felt more distant from the
team,” Edgar said.
Both teams will continue to refine their health and safety protocols before the first games, but neither the A’s nor the Giants will have a trial run to welcome fans during exhibition games prior to Opening Day. At the beginning of February, the teams agreed to play their annual Bay Bridge exhibitions in Arizona at their spring training stadiums.
The Giants and A’s have both made efforts to publish health and safety protocols
they plan to use at their ballparks this season on their websites prior to Friday’s announcement, which has made a strong impression on some of the fans who are excited to return to the Coliseum and Oracle Park.
“Given what the team is doing to protect fans, where case numbers are at, and the ramp-up of the vaccine we’re excited to take in home games with the team again,” A’s fan Matt Spiel said.