What cold? Frigid temps can't stop joy as fans return to MLB

CHICAGO (AP) — Wearing a Chicago Cubs jacket and hat, Marc Passoni took in the moment. His buddy, Greg Cooper, stood nearby on his 59th birthday, holding an orange sign that read “First Masked Game 4-1-21.”

It was windy and cold at Wrigley Field, and neither of them cared all that much. They were home.

“It's life-changing,” said Passoni, 40, of Springfield. “After the year we just had, not being able to touch our family, go to church, do anything, this is like church to me, baby. We're home and we're going forward.”

Said Cooper: “Best place on Earth to be today. I don't care if it's 30 degrees or 10 degrees.”

It was much warmer than that, actually — a toasty 36 as the Cubs hosted Pittsburgh on Thursday.

Opening day marked the return of fans to ballparks across the country after they were shut out last season because of the coronavirus pandemic. While there were small crowds for last year's NL Championship Series and World Series in Arlington, Texas, the cathedrals of the sport were mostly empty all summer long.

Not on this day, though. These openers were all about crowds at Wrigley and Yankee Stadium. About the cheers in snowy Detroit, Cincinnati and Milwaukee.

“It’s great being back to the park," said Fred Grant, 64, of Canton, Michigan, at Comerica Park as Detroit played Cleveland.

“It is a little cold. This has not got the feel of an opening day. It feels more like the Tigers when they lost a hundred games, with 8,000 fans here. But it’s great to be back,” he said.

Bundled up, Grant wasn't in his seat in middle innings. He was watching the game from up on the concourse level, where there was a bit of sun.

Limited capacities were the norm everywhere but Texas, which was allowed to fill 100% of Globe Life Field. But there were actual...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/What-cold-Frigid-temps-can-t-stop-joy-as-fans-16070497.php