Goldeyes to play first home game in two years on May 21
By: Bryce Hunt
After a year-long road trip, the Winnipeg Goldeyes are stepping up to the plate at Shaw Park this summer.
The Goldeyes home opener, scheduled for May 21, will be the first game played at Shaw Park since September 2019.
Goldeyes Broadcaster Steve Schuster said the players greatly missed the fans and their support last year.
“One reason these guys sign to play in Winnipeg is that they know we have great fan support,” he said.
The team played last season’s home games in Fargo, N.D. due to COVID-19 restrictions that prevented travel from the US into Canada.
The team hopes to have fans in attendance for its home opener but will have to wait for the government’s approval before opening its doors.
To make the experience safe for fans, the team developed the COVID-19 Readiness Plan that includes limited attendance, temperature checks for fans entering the park, socially distanced seating, sanitation stations, and digital tickets to reduce points of contact.
Schuster said the club’s COVID-19 plan is a home run.
“With our plan and the vaccine rollout in Winnipeg, we’re confident that we can host fans at Shaw Park in a safe manner that will adhere to every provincial and federal guideline,” he said.
“It would mean everything to the team to be able to have their fans cheering them on this summer.”
A return to the ballpark would allow Winnipeg sports fans their first opportunity to attend a professional sporting event since March 9, 2020.
Noah Schlichting, a Business Administration student at RRC, said a Goldeyes game would be a nice change of pace after being stuck inside all year.
“It would be nice to go out and do something for once,” he said. “It makes me happy that sporting events are slowly coming back.”
Schlichting added that he would feel 100 per cent safe attending a game, based on the Goldeyes’ COVID-19 Readiness Plan.
The Goldeyes welcoming fans back would signal a return to normality for Winnipeg’s sporting markets and give baseball fans something to look forward to this summer.
Goldeyes players will report to Winnipeg in the first week of May for training camp before hitting the road to start the season.
