At 2 p.m. Tuesday, the gates at Nationals Park opened. And for the first time in over a year, fans — remember those? — walked into a professional sports stadium in D.C. to watch a game.
There were only 5,000 allowed to attend. But when Washington raised its 2019 World Series banner again, the muted roar that rang around the park still felt natural.
Around the country, that scene is becoming more familiar again. After a sports shutdown preceded a fan lockout due to the coronavirus pandemic, supporters are returning to arenas in varied numbers, from the few in D.