Fans banned from stadium when Baltimore Orioles play tonight, which may be a MLB first
After postponing a scheduled Baltimore Orioles game against the Chicago White Sox on Monday and Tuesday, due to rioting in the city, team officials came up with a highly unusual solution to the problem of how to play the game on Wednesday.
They are starting it much earlier than the original 7:05 p.m. game time, which would have been necessary to comply with a 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. emergency curfew imposed citywide. And they are banning fans from the stadium, reports the Washington Post (reg. req.).
The fan ban may be a first in the 145-year history of Major League Baseball; a MLB spokesman said he is unaware of any other MLB game that has been played without fans present and the Baseball Hall of Fame and MLB’s official historian agreed, according to the Associated Press and Bloomberg.
“It’s all about what’s best for the city and the safety of our people,” Orioles manager Buck Showalter told the AP. “The last thing you want to do is put the fans in harm’s way. You have to err on the side of safety.”
The decision by the team followed violence Saturday near Camden Yards, as protesters demonstrated against the death of Freddie Gray while in police custody as the Orioles were playing the Boston Red Sox, as an ESPN story details. During that game, fans were told to stay inside the stadium due to an “ongoing public safety issue.”
A weekend series between the Orioles and the Tampa Bay Rays has been moved to St. Petersburg, Florida, but the Orioles will remain the home team and will hence bat last, according to Bloomberg.
Fans who couldn’t attend the games in Baltimore this week will be allowed to exchange their tickets for any remaining home game this season. Meanwhile, the missed games on the team’s schedule will be made up via a doubleheader in Baltimore on May 28.
Related coverage:
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: “Fan-less Baltimore Orioles game could be an MLB first”
USA Today: “Rays relieved by series move: ‘We just didn’t want to go to Baltimore’”
