Rays 'Actively Exploring' Options to Allow Fans to Attend Games amid COVID-19

The Tampa Bay Rays are "actively exploring" scenarios to have fans attend the team's games when MLB games resume, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. 

"[St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman] is open-minded on this," communications director Ben Kirby told Topkin via text Thursday. "He's talked to the Rays. Everyone would like to see the trajectory of the data change. But the mayor is receptive to learning more."

Any plans to bring back fans will be contingent on social distancing guidelines as cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in Florida. The state has seen 5,000 new reported cases of the coronavirus in each of the past two days.

"We miss the passionate support our fans bring to Tropicana Field and Al Lang Stadium, but the health and safety of our fans, players, coaches, and staff remains paramount to our reopening plans," Rays president Brian Auld said Thursday, per Topkin. "We continue to work closely with local authorities and experts to determine a safe path forward."

The Rays aren't the only MLB team considering putting fans in the stands. Boston Red Sox president Sam Kennedy revealed Wednesday that the team, and others around baseball, were also considering attendance:

That should raise some eyebrows in the players association, as one of the negotiating points from the owners as they sought to additionally cut player salaries—beyond the previously agreed-upon prorated scale of pay—was that they were facing major revenue loss from not having fans attend games. 

Granted, it may ultimately be decided that fans should not be present because of safety measures given the coronavirus pandemic, making it a moot point. But it remains a storyline to watch as baseball begins gearing up for the 2020 season.