NEW YORK – Fans return to major league stadiums for openers on Thursday amid pandemic attendance restrictions in most places, and baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred can envision filled ballparks by midseason.
Capacity will be limited to about 12% at the season’s start in Boston and Washington. Twelve teams are at 20%, Colorado at about 43% and Houston at 50%.
The only team higher is Texas, at 100%. “I hope by midsummer that we have ballparks that are unrestricted and we have full fan access,” Manfred said Wednesday during an interview with The Associated Press.
Last year’s shortened regular season was played entirely without fans, who were allowed back only for the NL Championship Series and World Series, and then in limited numbers for