The Yankees and Mets can officially have more fans at Opening Day.
In his latest coronavirus press briefing, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced that as of April 1, all outdoor sports and entertainment venues with capacities over 2,500 will be allowed to have 20 percent capacity.
That means that Yankee Stadium will be allowed to have 10,850 fans for the season opener April 1 vs. Toronto, and Citi Field can allow up to 8,384 fans starting with the Mets’ April 8 home opener, according to the numbers given by the Governor.
“We’re gonna play ball, and play ball with a crowd, which is so good for the psyche,” Cuomo said. “The crowd is what makes the game.”
Indoor venues remain capped at 10 percent, and face coverings and proof of negative COVID test or immunization will be required to attend, but the restrictions will be re-evaluated in mid-May.
Cuomo also thanked the Yankees and Mets for opening their stadiums as mass vaccination sites, and Yankees President Randy Levine revealed that Yankee Stadium will remain open as a vaccination center while the baseball season is in progress.
“This is incredibly exciting now, and we’re going to keep the vaccine center open while the season is going, because this is bigger than baseball,” Levine said. “Yankee Stadium is ready, because we’ve been told YS is the safest stadium in the world. Our stadium operations team has worked hard, and we promise you we will do everything we can to keep our fans safe – and hopefully, if both teams remain healthy, we’ll have a Subway Series!”
Levine also thanked the Mets – joking that “we want to kill each other on the field, but we’re great partners off of it – to which Mets vice chairman Andy Cohen had a fun reply.
“On behalf of Steve and myself, thank you for all your efforts. The Yankees organization has been great to collaborate with – and I don’t want to start any trouble with our friends in the Bronx, because CC Sabathia is a big man in person!” Cohen smiled. “We’re all very excited to be here. It’s another step forward for our hometown, and we’re looked forward to re-opening Citi Field in a safe manner.”
Sabathia and Al Leiter were both in attendance with Levine and Cohen, and both smiled when Cuomo, a noted Mets fan, showed off a reversible face covering with Mets logos on one side and Yankees logos on the other.
“I’m excited to be here – I grew up on the west coast but consider myself a New Yorker now, and dealing with COVID this last year, we’re excited to be able to get out,” Sabathia said. “And as a fan now, being able to be in the stadium now cheering on the Yankees is great. Continue to get vaccinated and do the right things, so by the end of the season, we can have a full crowd for the World Series.”
Added Leiter: “I’m one of the players who has played for both the Yankees and the Mets, so I get the whole two-sided mask thing! I was with the Mets after 9/11 when we came back to play, and remember how scared and nervous we were, but I remember what baseball meant. The fact we came back, and wearing all of those first responders’ hats, and knowing we carried the baton…it was the right thing. I’m thrilled fans will get the chance to be back in the Stadium – and now doubt about it, when you’re playing in front of a big crowd, there’s nothing like it, and there’s no better place and fans than New York.”
Leiter also predicted that Sabathia is “going to the Hall of Fame as a Yankee, folks.”
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