The road to recovery will also include baseball. Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that Yankees and Mets games will allow full capacity in some areas of their ballparks.
For some, it will feel like a real game once again. Starting May 19, Yankee Stadium and Citi Field will have certain sections set aside for those who are vaccinated. In those areas social distancing restrictions will be lifted, though all fans will still be required to wear a mask.
The teams are trying to help build on the 58% of eligible New Yorkers who have already received a vaccine shot. Starting in a few weeks, fans will be able to get a Johnson & Johnson single-dose shot at both ballparks, plus get a free ticket to the game.
Earlier this week, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that most capacity restrictions for businesses, restaurants and cultural venues would be lifted by May 19th. While stadiums and arenas such as Citi Field and Yankees Stadium were set at a much more conservative 33% capacity, Cuomo announced a major shift in that policy during a press briefing on Wednesday: starting May 19th, both baseball stadiums will be able to increase capacity by splitting their seating between vaccinated and unvaccinated fans.
The stadiums will be allowed 100% capacity for fully vaccinated fans in certain sections, while also keeping part of their stadiums reserved for unvaccinated fans at 33% capacity—these fans are still subject to the CDC six foot social distancing guideline. Cuomo also said that the previous stadium policy, which allowed people in who had proof of a recent negative COVID test, will be thrown out.