#MLB fan restrictions could relax in ‘late spring’

Dr. Anthony Fauci on Sunday said that “more and more” baseball fans could be allowed to return to the stands at games starting in the late spring.

“I would expect that as we get through the summer — late spring, early summer — there’s going to be a relaxation where you’re going to have more and more people allowed into baseball parks, very likely separated with seating, very likely continue to wear masks,” Fauci told CBS anchor Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation.”

The Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said that restrictions will likely gradually become more relaxed as a larger number of Americans are vaccinated against COVID-19.

“I think if we do it correctly and we get the vaccines out at the rate we’re doing, that will happen,” he said, referring to fans’ return to the ballpark this year.

Currently, the MLB permits fans to attend games with social-distancing and mask rules, but each ballpark’s capacity limits are dependent on local government restrictions.

In New York, Yankee Stadium and CitiField are facing 20 percent capacity caps.