Texas Rangers will open the 2020 season at Globe Life Field, but likely without fans
Some good news arrived Monday evening for the Texas Rangers hours after they revealed a positive COVID-19 test for their best player, Joey Gallo.
They will open the abbreviated 2020 MLB season at Globe Life Field on July 24 against the Colorado Rockies.
There’s a catch, which many will also consider to be good news: Fans will likely not be allowed at least on the opening homestand.
The Rangers are playing 60 games, 40 of which are against the other four teams in the American League West. The five teams in the National League West fill out the schedule, with the Rangers playing their “natural rival” Rockies six times.
“Knowing the schedule itself, knowing we’re going to play 40 against our division and 20 against the National League West, we’ve already started our preparation on those teams and knowing what we’re going to expect and what we’re going to be up against,” manager Chris Woodward said. “I know nobody’s ever played in our place, so that’s got to be a little bit of an advantage on our part.”
The Rangers will play host to the Rockies on July 21-22 in exhibition games that fans will not be allowed to attend. The Rangers are anticipating that fans won’t be permitted until August.
The team had been looking at allowing as many as 20,000 fans per game, up to 50% capacity, based on allowances from the governor’s reopen plan last month. However, a spike in COVID-19 cases in recent days has led MLB to reconsider if fans will be allowed at any ballparks this season.
“I’m less concerned with fans’ impact on the players’ safety than on their own and the employees with whom they’d have close contact,” general manager Jon Daniels said. “We want and need to feel comfortable that we can all feel as safe as possible. That’s why we’ve got to take things seriously if we want to put a dent in this and play the season. It goes back to masks and being socially distant.”
The Rangers expect Gallo, who is asymptomatic, to be available by Opening Day. They will play the Rockies for three games and then host the Arizona Diamondbacks for two before heading on their first road trip July 31-Aug. 6 at San Francisco and Oakland.
The longest homestand is seven games Aug. 24-30 against the Oakland A’s and Los Angeles Dodgers, and their longest road trip is their last of the season Sept. 15-23, eight games against the Houston Astros, the Los Angeles Angels and the Diamondbacks.
The Rangers will close the season Sept. 24-27 at home against the Astros.
The schedule has the Rangers playing 10 games against the other four AL West teams, but not on an even five-home, five-road split. They will play the A’s seven times at home, but play the Seattle Mariners seven times on the road.
The Angels visit Globe Life Field six times, and Astros’ season-ending series is the only time the AL champs will visit the new $1.2 billion ballpark.
This story was originally published July 6, 2020 at 5:37 PM.
