Greenville drive ready to fill seats

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The Greenville Drive will open Fluor Field for full-capacity seating, except in two sections, on June 1, in accordance with Major League Baseball rules and regulations, the team announced today. 

The Drive, which had been operating at roughly 50% capacity and offering general admission seating since its season opener on May 5, will return to an assigned seating model following what it called “a safe and successful May homestand.”

Ticket sales for the remainder of the season will open May 21 and can be purchased online, according to a news release.

“In accordance with Major League Baseball’s updated protocols, all ‘buffer zones’ from the field will be removed,” the news release said. However, to meet the needs of those fans who prefer to have a socially distanced experience at the ballpark, sections 101 and 117 will be made into pods of two and four seats. Those seats will not be available for sale, but available on a first-come, first-served basis for any fan with a ticket to a game. Season ticket holders will be able to reserve pods in advance.

The Drive will continue to provide various safety measures throughout the ballpark, including increased cleaning procedures in the restrooms and stands, hand sanitizer stations and broader use of mobile ticketing and cashless transactions, the release said. Masks, while no longer required in accordance with CDC recommendations and local laws, will be encouraged, especially in crowded sections or lines.

The Drive and Fluor Field also are offering on-site vaccinations throughout the season, in partnership with Prisma Health.  The next vaccination clinic is scheduled for June 1, with additional clinics scheduled for July 1, Aug. 3, and Sept. 1.

Any fan can receive a first or second dose of the Pfizer vaccine, with no appointment required, according to the release.  Doses must be taken a minimum of three weeks and a maximum of six weeks apart, and anyone who receives a vaccine on-site will receive a complimentary ice cream from Sweet Caroline’s and a complimentary ticket to a future Drive game. More information on Fluor Field vaccination clinics can be found on the team’s website.

“Greenville’s front porch is now open for business at nearly full capacity, and we are looking forward to once again providing our community with the best and most affordable experience in all of baseball,” Greenville Drive owner and President Craig Brown said in the release. “However, as excited as we are, we are committed to doing this in the safest way possible, with the needs of the community foremost in our minds. Opening Fluor Field in this manner is a very visible and huge step in returning to a degree of normalcy here in Greenville, and the Drive is proud to lead the way in an intentional and responsible manner.”

The Greenville Drive, the South Atlantic League affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, are in their 15th season at Fluor Field in downtown Greenville.