The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, New York has been closed its doors in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. That is about to change. Starting this Friday (June 26), the Hall of Fame will reopen for baseball fans.
Per a press release from the Hall of Fame, it is opening under the guidelines provided by New York state and the CDC.
"On behalf of the National Baseball Hall of Fame's Board of Directors and our entire staff, we look forward to welcoming visitors back to Cooperstown to celebrate the game we love," Tim Mead, President of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum said. "Members of our staff have worked tirelessly to prepare and enact plans that will allow us to open our doors. Throughout this process, the health and well-being of our staff and our visitors has remained paramount."
In order to avoid congestion, the Hall will be issuing timed tickets on a first-come, first-served basis.
Our Katherine Acquavella took a look at how the Hall was handling the shutdown earlier this month.
With the opening, the Hall also announced that it is debuting a new feature: "Starting Nine: The Must-See Artifacts from your Favorite Team." That seems fun. Something for everyone. More on that from the Hall:
The Museum's curators spent countless hours mining the collection for special objects that represent each major league team, providing a new and extraordinary visitor experience tailored to each baseball fan. A lineup card – available at the Hall of Fame or at Starting Nine's mobile website – identifies nine must-see artifacts on display within the Museum for each of the 30 Major League Baseball teams.
On the flip side, the ceremony to honor the Hall of Fame class of 2020 -- Derek Jeter, Larry Walker, Ted Simmons and the late Marvin Miller -- was cancelled earlier this year. It will take place in 2021, likely along with at least one new member of the 2021 class joining the fray.
