If the Giants return to Oracle Park this summer it will have a much different vibe, and not just because the bullpens are being moved into center field and the dimensions are becoming cozier.
It's a certainty that the season will at least start without fans in the stands and you won't find many who believe that will change before next April. While attendance has dipped at Oracle Park in recent years, the Giants still regularly draw about 30,000 to games, and those who showed made their presence felt in close games. It didn't seem a coincidence that the Giants, even in a rough year, had 40 come-from-behind wins and eight walk-offs.
Those comeback attempts this season won't be spurred on by screams and cheers, and on a recent episode of "Chalk Talk at Home," the Brandons talked about how strange it'll be to play in front of 40,000 empty seats.
"I don't love the idea of not having fans in the stands, but if you want to play baseball that might be our only option," Brandon Belt said. "I'm hoping that we can maybe pump in some noise or something whenever we do something good. The fans give us a lot of energy and a lot of times will help us pull through when maybe we're behind and we've got to dig a little extra to come out on top.
"You get a lot of that energy from the fans, and if they're not there I'm curious to see how it's going to play out. You definitely don't to do it without fans, but right now it looks to be our only option."
Crawford agreed that it's not ideal, but also is necessary for the game to resume. With the restrictions because of COVID-19, even coaching staffs are expected to be limited. There might be fewer than 200 total people at Oracle Park when the next game is played, counting team personnel as well as necessary ballpark workers.
"That's not what anybody wants, to play in a big empty stadium," Crawford said. "But if that's the only way we get baseball back for this year I think we've got to do what we've got to do."
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There might be some creative solutions to make it seem more normal. There has been talk of finding a way to digitally insert fans and noise for TV audiences, and teams certainly could play canned crowd noise or music in the park to better the atmosphere. Perhaps baseball teams will follow the Lakers' lead, altering the lighting in the ballpark so the field is illuminated and the rest is dark. Crawford noted that he had seen cardboard cutouts in the seats for games played in South Korea.
"At least it makes it look like there's people out there," he said. "It was kind of a funny idea."
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No matter what the Giants decide to do, this will be yet another adjustment. The veterans on the team played during the sport's longest sellout streak, but it might be easier for the younger Giants to get used to empty seats. On a recent Giants Insider Podcast, Austin Slater said it would be weird, but also somewhat familiar.
"It would be a throwback to the early days of like (rookie ball) and short-season baseball," Slater said. "It can be done. It wouldn't be quite as enjoyable, not only for us, but obviously for the fans, but I think at the end of the day people just want to see baseball. If that's what it takes I think that's the best course of action."
How would Giants feel about playing games in front of empty seats? originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
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