COVID-19 is not over, just because we have three vaccines in wide circulation right now. Yes, a lot of people are getting vaccinated, everyday, but there is still a very long ways to go in terms of getting the rest of the population vaxxed. Whether youve received your shot or not, or if you’re in between doses, you still must protect yourself.
This pandemic is probably in the 6th or 7th inning right now, but if we let up, it will rage on well into extra innings. Tomorrow brings Major League Baseball opening day 2021, and with it, stringent guidelines for entry into ballparks.
The New York Yankees and Yankee Stadium are no different.
The Yanks get started tomorrow at 1:05 p.m. against the Toronto Blue Jays. Yankee Stadium gates will open to Guests with valid tickets beginning at 11:00 a.m.
All guests must adhere to Yankee Stadium Health & Safety Guidelines for Stadium entry, including:
- PCR or antigen COVID-19 testing with negative results or proof of full COVID-19 vaccination prior to entry. Please visit: the YANKEE STADIUM HEALTH & SAFETY GUIDELINES section of www.yankees.com/updates for full details.
- Temperature checks in order to gain entry.
- Mandatory wearing of face coverings over a Guest’s nose and mouth at all times while visiting Yankee Stadium except when actively eating or drinking at their ticketed seats. Face coverings are required for all Guests two (2) and older, including those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine. Facial shields without an accompanying facial covering will not be permitted.
- Physical distancing in accordance with New York State’s requirements.
Also, all tickets will be mobile/digital only. There will be no printed out paper tickets. (The Cubs are enacting similar measures at Wrigley Field)
Obviously, temperature checks at the door are more of a feel good measure for the hosting venue than a diagnostic. A temperature just indicates the presence of an infection, and that can be a different infection than the coronavirus. Also, you can be covid positive and be asymptomatic.
Still, temperature checks do have the potential to screen out a few covid-19 positive people here and there. Overall, you have to remember the three Ws: wear a mask, wash your hands and….aWay from people you must stay. If you’ve been doing this all along, keep up the good work, if we still vigilant, we’ll all get across the finish line on this pandemic soon.
Also tomorrow’s season opener at Yankee Stadium will see moments of silence will be observed for Hank Steinbrenner and Dr. Bobby Brown.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank, partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” has regularly appeared in WGN, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune and SB Nation. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram.