Image: CNN
Camden Yards' capacity is for nearly 46,000 rowdy fans, but that day an eerily empty stadium made baseball very weird that day. Major League Baseball's official historian John Thorn said, "Baseball is filled with the strange, but this is beyond strange" (CNN Article). After a strikeout, a homerun, and even at the end of an inning, there were no roars or cheers from the fans, which made it very different and weird for the players. Some players told reporters how strange it was actually hearing how loud the ball is when it struck the bat once they hit it. Although the public were not allowed to attend the game inside the stadium, people were supporting the Orioles outside the gates cheering and continued to support their team.
There were some strange moments from the Baltimore Orioles game. Some of the Oriole players were trying to make light of the situation by signing fake autographs to the imaginary fans, throwing the ball after the end of an inning in the stands, and tipping their hats and waving to the stands like people were actually in them. Even though the Oriole players and the organization wish the public could be in attendance, they understood the circumstances and care more about the safety of their city. Thorn said, "The Orioles and Major League Baseball have clearly placed the primary issue of public safety over the secondary issue of profit and the tertiary issue of scheduling convenience," (CNN).
Here you can watch an update on the Baltimore riots that also shows more on the empty Baltimore Orioles baseball game that was played.
