CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- It's Opening Day at Wrigley Field -- a cold one at that.
WBBM Newsradio's Rob Hart was outside Wrigley Field on Thursday morning where he said the lights were shining bright, the red, white, and blue bunting was draped over the railing of the bleachers, and the souvenir sellers were unpacking their trucks and getting ready for a new season.
Additionally, ballpark workers were busy Thursday morning putting the finishing touches on Wrigley field, as it prepares to host Cubs fans for the first time since the end of the 2019 season.
President of Business Operations Crane Kenny said even though ballpark capacity is limited at around 10,000 people, the players will still feed off of the energy that they provide.
"Twenty-five percent could make a lot of noise," Kenny said.
He added that it's good for the neighborhood as well.
"A total of 5,000 people that work for our organization if you include Marquee Sports Network, the hotel, the restaurants, obviously the ballpark, our retail stores - all of them will be open," Kenny said.
Kenny said the ballpark experience has been reimagined to respond to COVID-19.
"The playbook that has been used here for over 100 years to host baseball was thrown out the window; and it's completely remade for this season," he said.
Fans can expect a virtually touchless experience. Capacity will be capped at 25 percent, with fans seated in social-distanced pods.
The bleachers are reserved for fully vaccinated healthcare workers. It's the team's way of saying thank you for their work over the past year.
The Opening Day ballpark giveaway is a KN95 mask and a bottle of hand sanitizer.
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Mayor Lightfoot, Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady, and Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike will throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Kenny added that with the COVID-19 vaccine rollout underway, today is a day for celebration.
"The typical lifecycle of a vaccine is about 10 years. To have this done in a single year and get people back in and only miss one season without fans is a reason to celebrate. So we will be doing all of that today," he said.