It may be July 24. There might be no fans. But it is still Opening Day.
The Red Sox kick off their 2020 season Friday at 7:30 p.m. against the Orioles, with the team celebrating the new campaign with a pregame ceremony leading into the first pitch. Here is what the Sox have planned -- along with some other changes inside the ballpark -- per their press release:
The Red Sox open their 120th home season, and their 109th at Fenway Park, this Friday, July 24, starting at approximately 7 p.m. with pregame ceremonies that will air live on NESN and WEEI. The team plays the Baltimore Orioles at 7:30 p.m., the first time in 10 years the club has opened the season with a night home game, which last occurred on April 4, 2010 with a Sunday Night Baseball game on ESPN against the Yankees.
Pregame Ceremonies
Beginning about 30 minute before the game, the two teams will be introduced along the base lines. With the American flag draped over the Green Monster, the national anthem will be performed by indie gospel recording artist, and Springfield native, Michelle Brooks-Thompson.
Supporting the Black Lives Matter Movement
Fans watching Friday’s home opener will see elements of the Black Lives Matter movement incorporated into the pregame ceremony and physically represented throughout the ballpark. As part of a league-wide effort for Opening Day, a stencil behind the mound will features MLB’s logo with the acronym “BLM.” The base jewels and line-up cards will also feature the “BLM” acronym.
Within the walls of Fenway Park, there will be a prominently featured “Black Lives Matter” sign stretching 120 feet wide and 20 feet high covering several sections of the Bleacher seats in center field. Outside of the ballpark, the Red Sox Foundation has affixed those same words on their 254-foot-long Lansdowne Street billboard that faces the Mass Pike. A link to photos of the Bleacher sign and Mass Pike billboard can be found below.
Auxiliary Dugout and Bullpen Seating
Consistent with MLB’s health and safety guidelines for the 2020 season, expanded dugout seating areas have been constructed at Fenway Park using seats adjacent to both the Red Sox and Visitor’s Dugouts. Sections of the lower rows of Field Box seats located between the home plate and dugout field doors on both the first base and third base sides have been converted into covered seating that will allow for proper physical distancing.
Expanded, covered seating areas for the bullpens have also been installed in front of the Bleachers, immediately behind the existing Red Sox and Visitor’s bullpens. The new auxiliary seating areas include direct access to and from the bullpens with the installation of new, temporary stairs within the bullpens.
Visitor’s Clubhouse Expansion
The existing Visitor’s Clubhouse facilities at Fenway Park have been augmented and expanded for the 2020 season to allow for appropriate density and physical distancing between players and staff. The lockers for the players have been moved out of the existing locker room and into a newly created auxiliary locker room in the third base concourse area outside the Visitor’s Clubhouse.
Additionally, the Gate A Concourse, typically a concession area and walkway for fans, has been transformed into an expanded training and workout area with artificial turf and strength and conditioning equipment. Accommodations for dining and meeting space will be provided on the Ketel One Third Base Deck.
Similar to the reconfiguration of the Red Sox Clubhouse areas, these covered but not fully enclosed spaces are intended to provide the visiting team with facilities that are in line with MLB’s health and safety guidelines for the 2020 season.
Crowd Noise
With the 2020 regular season getting underway without fans, a crowd noise system has been implemented to create a “bed” of noise that is designed to mimic the natural sound created by fans in the ballpark. Fans watching at home will hear these enhancements, among others planned by NESN, as part of their broadcast.