CINCINNATI – Baseball fans got a double-serving of good news Thursday when Major League Baseball announced the end of its labor dispute and organizers of the Findlay Market Opening Day Parade confirmed the event is back on.
Team owners and players reached a deal to end the 99-day lockout. As a result, the iconic parade will now likely be held on April 12.
What You Need To Know
- Opening Day is now scheduled for Tuesday, April 12
- There were fears the parade would be canceled for a third straight year due to a labor dispute between MLB owners and players
- The event attracts tens of thousands of Cincinnati Reds fans and fans of the sport to downtown Cincinnati
- The unofficial Cincinnati holiday is also a big economic driver for the city’s small businesses, especially bars and restaurants
Debbie Gannaway, one of the parade’s organizers, called the news “a gift and a relief.”
Originally scheduled for March 31, the annual parade wasn’t held in 2020 or 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The threat of a third consecutive cancellation was a disappointment to many people across the region.
“Nothing is ever 100%, but we are pretty sure it’s gonna happen April 12 and it’s gonna be awesome,” Gannaway said. “People have been waiting years for this. They’re more than ready.”
MLB’s Opening Day is much more than a sporting event in Cincinnati; it’s a day when thousands of children and adults from all walks of life come together for a community celebration.
The beginning of each Cincinnati Reds season is an unofficial holiday in southwest Ohio. The team now known as the Reds is believed to be the first professional baseball team in the United States, playing its first game in May 1869.
The parade’s new date switches the event from a Thursday to a Tuesday, but Gannaway isn’t worried that it will affect attendance.
Gannaway, owner of Gramma Debbie’s Kitchen at Findlay Market, said the date switch is a “blessing” because it won’t interfere as much with weekend business.
The Opening Day Parade, which winds its way from the market in Over-the-Rhine through downtown and stops near Great American Ball Park along the riverfront, was also first held in 1869. It’s an important part of the festivities and kicks off a day of eating, drinking and baseball.
The parade usually starts around 10 a.m. at the market and wraps up around 1 p.m. just outside Great American Ball Park. People line up hours before, however, and can be found lingering around downtown long after the final out of the game is called.
It’s not yet clear when the parade would start this year. The scheduled game with the Cleveland Guardians is set for 6:40 p.m., which is later than most Reds openers.
The typical parade includes about 175 parade slots consisting of performers, politicians, local celebrities and nonprofit organizations – all of which have parade-worthy floats, props and banners.
Gannaway said as soon as the news broke Thursday she started receiving phone calls from groups asking if they could be in the parade.
The new date leaves “more than enough time to prepare,” she said.