Fans at baseball games this season ?

Goags20172

I had thought we'd see fans at basketball games this season, but I don't really know about that now. So my attention has turned to baseball. I don't doubt there will be a season. The sport offers considerably more social distancing for most of the players on the field. It's really more a matter of keeping up with the testing and enforcing the safety measures. Maybe it is shortened or they play more or less just against teams that are closer/conference only. If I had to guess I'd say they have a few tune-up games against the likes of Sac State and UOP then the usual conference games, so about 30-35 games.
Sac State's coach tweeted an interesting idea-breaking up the conferences for this year and organizing purely regional play, so UCD would play weekend series against Stanford, CAL, etc instead of the southern CA teams. I like that idea, very good for limiting travel. The PAC-12 teams might hate it though, playing so many games against weaker conference opponents.

Whatever they do I think the question of whether or not fans are allowed at baseball games anywhere will vary by county. The closer to the capitol a school is the tougher the restrictions will be. For political reasons Newsom has to be tough in his own backyard or he comes off as weak. He doesn't have much of a handle on southern CA-certain areas continue to openly defy him. Personally I don't think he needs to worry about that-the longer the restrictions last the more voters he will lose. People already hate him.

I hate to say it, but it's times like these that show just how selfish and stupid people can be. I thought I was just a cranky old man when I ranted about the inconsiderate fans at games. Not so much now-people are awful. The continued restrictions are completely the fault of the people who ignore the mask and social distancing guidelines, as well as the gatherings. This problem is made worse by people who simply just don't know how to be alone. We should all be so lucky to work from home and be bored, because being bored is soooooo much worse than COVID-19. I say, suck it up, buttercup ! Go read a book and shut up.

Counties have the flexibility to have even tighter restrictions if they have reason to do so. Yolo County and UCD have to decide if the potential economic benefit of having fans attend (tax revenue from local businesses and hotels attendees will use) is worth the potential health risk. With baseball I think they'll say no.

Even if they do admit fans to UCD or Sac State games I think I'd skip the first two months. People go crazy any time the government withholds a privilege and then gives it back- evidence the Southern CA beach gatherings the first time restrictions were loosened. If people weren't being so stupid and selfish we'd be attending basketball games right now.

fugawe09

Assuming vaccines become widely available in the spring and the public takes them, I think fall 2021 is the earliest the university welcomes the general public back on campus. Right now UCD has compulsory testing and documentation for students and staff, which will probably be in place until community spread subsides. Those measures may be more difficult to impose on the public, which isn’t subject to employee or student discipline. In the world of optics, I don’t think UCD is as worried about currying favor with Newsom as they are about not wanting to contradict UCD Health, which is trying to position itself as a COVID leader. Agree with your point that the short term selfishness and greed by a few has only extended this situation for everyone else.

Goags20172

It is astonishing to still see how ignorant people are about COVID. I was in Safeway last night and when waiting on the designated and marked spot for my chance to approach the checkstand a bunch of people walk within less than a foot of me to get in line instead of going around. Said nothing to most as the close contact was very brief. Then this family, complete with an infant in a stroller, stand right behind me. The man appeared to be a blue collar worker from his uniform so there's a good chance he is working away from home and encountering others regularly.

I asked him politely if he could back up so we could practice social distancing and he got really defensive. The lamest excuses too. One, that other people in line weren't doing it. Two, the fact I was wearing a mask meant I wouldn't get it. Eventually they did back up. I tell you though his wife looked like she was completely oblivious, like maybe she'd been locked in the house and forbidden any connection to the outside world, even TV. They were wearing masks (except the infant) but he took his off because apparently talking with one on is just too inconvenient. The biggest question is- why was he not concerned that the infant was less than a foot from a person who, from their appearance, might also work outside the home around others ? And you know how it is at Safeway. You could be standing in line for 20 minutes because the dimwit in front of you is asking a bunch of questions about Monopoly or or the organic crap they're buying. No such thing as a quick trip to Safeway.

I meant that Newsom has been tougher on Sacramento and Yolo counties than he needed to be for appearances. If his backyard was a mess he'd look even more incompetent. Sacramento has barely been out of the purple category since before there even was any color coding, and my co-worker, who is antsy to get back in the gym, regularly points out to me counties with problems that were as bad or worse that weren't so tightly controlled. And much like many an Aggie baseball infielder of the past (other than Tanner Murray) he dropped the ball- not clamping down on the L.A. morons in time to prevent a dumpster fire.

fugawe09

↪Goags20172

I feel you. I’m not sure if it’s ignorance so much as open denial but I see the same things in public here. Sadly, I usually just try to move away from the antimask types because engaging just prolongs my exposure. Newsom has been far from perfect and certainly has not come down hard enough on Orange/LA Counties or the southern Central Valley but at least he is doing something, however misguided. My governor denies COVID is a thing and has been sending state police to rough up anyone who publicly disagrees. The unfairness of the whole thing is acute. My day job and the business I own basically rely on mass gatherings and are screwed. It boils my blood that business remains great for the cops, plumbers, and truck drivers that won’t social distance while I follow all the rules and my business still takes a dump because of them. Feels like theft and makes me want to pop them in their unmasked mouth.

Goags20172

I'm guessing from your description of the state police situation that you're in MD ?

That's really tough about the impact on your business. I got the impression that you're in either the construction or engineering fields from previous posts ? You definitely do need people to gather for that. I can understand even not wearing a mask when doing hard physical labor if the company has adequate safety measures in place.

I believe the governors have really missed the boat when it comes to what businesses to shut down during the pandemic. During previous shutdowns they have closed barber shops and salons. Hair can be a definite hygiene issue, not to mention the importance of appearance in business. What are your potential investors in Hong Kong going to think of your business if you join a video call with a choppy home hairxut or looking like Shaggy from Scooby Doo ? Bars that do not serve to-go meals- sure, shut them down.

And they can't even get an accurate reading on what else is essential. They may think a leisure book store isn't essential but stores offering items that help keep people distracted from being stuck at home alone may just be preventing impetuous suicides.

fugawe09

↪Goags20172

I’m in design and construction (and sometimes operations) of sports and leisure venues, so arenas, hotels, convention halls, attractions, themed restaurants, class A retail - you know all the places people can’t go right now. On the side, I own an event company, mainly weddings and such, which my state says I can operate as usual, but I have elected to cancel my contracts because I think weddings and parties are the biggest problem we have. Some of my competitors disagree and are happy to take the paycheck now, prolong this for everyone, and then have the nerve to point at me and say I’m dragging the economy down. Oy.

As to what businesses are essential, you are right about both over and under reactions. Most retail can operate with mask and capacity restrictions and still be profitable. Your hypothetical bookshop was unlikely to be packed anyway so it doesn’t make as much sense to close it, nor does the owner have a huge incentive to flaunt the rules. By virtue, bars and restaurant dining rooms are a bad idea, but most of them struggle economically with takeout only because their business model relies on tips as wages and it turns out in many cases the food and drink isn’t objectively good on its own; we go there for an experience. For carry out, the wings at BWW aren’t really worth twice the cost of fast food wings and the industry is desperate for us to not notice it all comes out of the same Sysco freezer bag. I think that’s part of why the restaurant lobby is so loud. In theory, a hair salon could operate in relative safety if it was one customer at a time, masks, and limited to cut and wash. In practice, that isn’t profitable because the business model is built around having multiple color blowouts going on. So salon owners allowed to open have a huge incentive to fudge the rules and ultimately some will if left to their own honor. Baseball is kind of the same. In theory it could operate in relative safety, but in practice is everyone going to stop spitting in the dugout and live in a tight bubble? Some coaches and players will rise to that challenge. Others won’t. And they ruin it for everyone.

Goags20172

Absolutely. People continue to spread this through the gatherings. I haven't seen my family since July, and I was only able to do that because I was on vacation and had been self-quarantined at home for two weeks as a precaution after I visited El Paso, which at the time was doing much better than other large Texas cities.

You're completely right about the restaurants. There are very few items you can order that are close to as good as take-out and fewer still that survive delivery in good shape, which suggests they weren't really that good in the first place. In my experience so far only pizza and Popeye's chicken consistently are of at least halfway decent quality, and the pizza delivery model has been around for decades. Domino's made their money on it. The pizza's not great, but you don't care as much because it's cheap and convenient.

And dine-in hamburgers are a trap. Burgers are supposed to be simple and cheap-it's why they're popular. Up-selling the product with ad-ons and "better quality ingriedients" and "farm to table" is targeted at suckers. Gross are their burgers look Sonic has the cheap crap model down.

I make a point of not ordering delivery from any restaurant using a third-party service. The drivers don't make you any kind of priority and they really don't care if you don't like their service since you've already paid them.

Fans at baseball games this season ?

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