Baseball and softball fields in Lamar County are now allowed to reopen, albeit for practice only – no actual games – and with strict guidelines.
The Lamar County Board of Supervisors held a special-called meeting Monday afternoon to discuss the best approach to reopening the fields and to establish a draft of guidelines that will be enforced by league managers.
“We’re getting some input, try to do the right thing, keep these kids safe, keep their parents safe, keep their grandparents safe, and move that way,” board president Warren Byrd said. “(We need to know) what guidelines we’re going to put into place to do our part in this community, to do our part to keep from spreading this, and do our part to protect our kids and parents. That being said, this is a guideline, a draft.”
Under the board’s guidelines, practice times are limited to between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. daily, and practice is only allowed to the extent that Centers for Disease Control social distancing guidelines can be maintained. Only the players and coaches on the league roster are allowed on the field, with a maximum of 20 people at one time, and common areas between fields are restricted to coming and going to practice.
Gathering or socializing between practicing teams is prohibited, and parents must remain at or in their vehicles and should not gather with other parents. Siblings should not come with parents to bring players to practice if possible, and persons listed as vulnerable by the CDC should avoid bringing players to practice if possible.
Parents should supply their children with antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer, and players are allowed to wear personal protective equipment – such as masks or gloves – as long as those items do not compromise the safety of any team members.
Teams are required to clean their dugout of all trash and other items after each practice and to wipe down or clean hard surfaces such as benches or bat racks. Coaches are encouraged to wear a mask or other face covering when within six feet of a player.
All players must use their own equipment if possible; if not, equipment must be sanitized before sharing. Handshakes and “high fives” are not allowed, and teams will be permitted from huddling.
Common water coolers are not allowed; players should bring their own personal cooler. Restrooms must be cleaned regularly by league operators and must be stocked with soap and disposable hand towels.
“Once again, the main focus on this … is to get these gets these kids back on the field,” Byrd said. “We’ve got a lot of kids that eat, breathe and sleep with baseballs under the pillow, and we’ve got a lot of kids that I feel like really don’t care if they ever have another practice.
“I know for a fact that in Purvis – and probably Lumberton also – that’s all they’ve got. They don’t have the money to go on vacation or go to the beach; (ball) is all they’ve got to do.”
A handful of league managers were present at the meeting, with some planning to begin practice that night and some early next week.
“I really don’t think we’re going to have a major problem with social distancing,” District 5 Supervisor Dale Lucus said. “When you put three fields on 10 acres, and you social distance everybody out, there’s plenty of room to do that.
“You’ve got to use common sense – you can’t have 40-something people sitting on one set of bleachers. But if they’re scattered out down the first base line, down the third base line and behind home plate, you can have 15 or 20 people there and nobody will be in very close proximity.”
