The Nationals' "mentions on Twitter were flooded" for their home opener yesterday against the Marlins with "complaints about long lines, rude staff, credit card and eCASH machines being down and ATMs being out of service." It "shouldn’t take 45 minutes to get a Nats Dog or a $9 Bud Light, as multiple fans claimed it did Monday." There was also some "confusion" about a promotional Magic 8-ball giveaway. The team in a statement said, “We pride ourselves on offering a first class fan experience. Today we fell short" (
WASHINGTON POST, 4/4).
After the Nats' 4-2 win, protesters "hung a large 'Impeach Trump' banner from the observation deck up the first base side" (WASHINGTON POST, 4/4). Trump had previously declined an invitation to throw out the first pitch, and White House officials cited a "scheduling conflict." In his place, the Nats "invited service members from the five military branches" to "throw simultaneous first pitches" (N.Y. TIMES, 4/4).
Meanwhile, for the Reds' home opener against the Phillies, a "surge of ticket holders into the first-base side gates at Great American Ball Park" created a "bottleneck." Fans on social media claimed that the resulting delays "lasted upward of 20 minutes." Another "likely factor was that a regular season record crowd of 43,804 attended the game" (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 4/4).
