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Pandemic-Obstructed Views

The strangest thing happened when the Yankees played in Philadelphia in early August: Their manager, Aaron Boone, complained about fans — at a game with no fans in the seats. Out beyond the center-field gates, on 10th Street, some die-hards had gathered for a distant peek at the action, equipped with air horns to disrupt Yankees pitchers.

Even in the grip of a pandemic, it’s hard to keep all fans from enjoying a quintessential American pastime: taking in a ballgame in the summer. The coronavirus chopped baseball’s season from 162 games per team and 68 million tickets sold to 60 games per team with zero tickets sold. But in many cities, enterprising fans have found vantage points to sneak a free look.

In some cities, like Chicago and Los Angeles, this has been possible for decades, with nearby rooftops or hillsides providing unobstructed views of the diamond. Elsewhere, fans are cramming onto the tops of parking garages or apartment patios for a glimpse of live major league action. And if you’re intent on catching a home run ball, there’s always McCovey Cove in San Francisco Bay, a perfect spot for kayakers to chase down any long ball that drops into the water.

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Fans cheered the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park during a series against the visiting Yankees. The group was called the Fandemic Crew.Credit...Ben Solomon for The New York Times
“I didn’t know who or where it was coming from,” Boone said after a Yankees game at Philadelphia. He complained to the umpires during the game about the noise coming from fans outside the stadium.Credit...Ben Solomon for The New York Times
Phillies fans used precisely timed air horn blasts to try to disrupt Yankees hitters and pitchers. “They had the horn going pretty well tonight,” Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto told reporters after one game.Credit...Ben Solomon for The New York Times
It’s difficult to get a good view close to Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles, but a hill in Elysian Park and a radio broadcast of a game allowed some fans to forge a real connection with a Dodgers-Giants game in July.Credit...Etienne Laurent/EPA, via Shutterstock
The rooftop bleachers above Waveland and Sheffield Avenues on the North Side of Chicago offer unobstructed views of the Wrigley Field diamond. This year, social distancing has been added.Credit...Joshua Mellin for The New York Times
Fans of the defending champion Washington Nationals had to take in their season opener from a distance, and the high-rise apartments near Nationals Park offered one viewing spot for the game against the Yankees. Credit...Alex Brandon/Associated Press
Modern baseball stadiums like Nationals Park, which opened in 2008, typically have open expanses beyond the outfield that allow fans outside the ballpark to have a distant view, like these spectators at a rooftop bar in Washington.Credit...Michael Reynolds/EPA, via Shutterstock
In San Diego, Chip Messenger’s apartment balcony overlooking Petco Park was the place to be for the Padres’ season opener in July.Credit...Sandy Huffaker for The New York Times
Waving a big flag from a balcony was perhaps the best way to support the Padres during their season opener since fans were not allowed in the stadium.Credit...Sandy Huffaker for The New York Times
A Rockies fan clapped for his team outside Coors Field. Credit...Isaiah J. Downing/USA Today Sports, via Reuters
McCovey Cove in San Francisco Bay is named for the Hall of Fame Giant Willie McCovey, a left-handed slugger who would have sent many home runs into the water if he had played at Oracle Park. Kayakers have long gathered during games to wait for balls to fly out of the park and into the water.Credit...Jim Wilson/The New York Times
Fans can’t get into Truist Park, the Atlanta Braves’ stadium that opened in 2017, but the Omni Hotel offered guests a look at the outfield.Credit...Todd Kirkland/Getty Images
The pandemic brought major league action to Buffalo, where the Toronto Blue Jays are playing after the Canadian government barred them from playing in their home country. Sadly, for Buffalo residents, a highway on-ramp is the best viewing spot they have. Credit...Timothy T. Ludwig/USA Today Sports, via Reuters
A lone fan perched herself atop a parking garage in Cleveland to watch the Indians play the Chicago White Sox at Progressive Field in July.Credit...Ken Blaze/USA Today Sports, via Reuters
On Aug. 13, as the season quickly approached its halfway point, a man clung to the gates of the Cincinnati Reds’ Great American Ball Park during a game against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates.Credit...Bryan Woolston/Associated Press

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