Sometimes it Rains
I think the umps should have called the game in the 4th inning. That would have meant starting all over tomorrow (today), and it would have killed Hamels for the game. They didn't want to do that, but they also didn't want the game to end after 5 innings. As soon as the Rays tied the score, the decision was clear, however.
Baseball made the right call here. The summer game should not be played in a driving rainstorm, and McCarver and Buck were right in that the sloppy basepaths took away from the Rays' strength in baserunning. Not to mention the risk of injury. Football players may be expected to run through a brick wall, but baseball players are actually athletes. You'd hate to see an Evan Longoria or Ryan Howard seriously injured because of poor playing conditions. Certainly in basketball, they stop the game and mop up the floor the minute there's a single drop of water on the court. And hockey stops the game twice to clean up the messy ice.
Football is the only one of the four major sports that is played regardless of weather. And if you've ever been forced to sit through a three-hour slogfest in the cold, driving rain, you'll agree that this is no fun for fans. Frankly, I can't understand why people like to go to football games in Green Bay or Buffalo, but I guess if you're going to be freezing anyway, you might as well enjoy some football. Me, I'd prefer to see a football game from the comfort of my own couch, where beers arefree and tivo allows me to skip over commercials, time outs, and the endless boredom of official review.
LA fans--we have it easy. There's hardly ever been a rain delay at Dodger Stadium, and even USC football is played in brilliant sunshine most of the time. But in the rest of the world, where there is weather, there are consequences. Even the Phillies said they wouldn't have wanted to win the World Series in a shortened game.
I'm usually the first to criticize baseball for having its head up its butt, but Selig made the right call here.
Baseball made the right call here. The summer game should not be played in a driving rainstorm, and McCarver and Buck were right in that the sloppy basepaths took away from the Rays' strength in baserunning. Not to mention the risk of injury. Football players may be expected to run through a brick wall, but baseball players are actually athletes. You'd hate to see an Evan Longoria or Ryan Howard seriously injured because of poor playing conditions. Certainly in basketball, they stop the game and mop up the floor the minute there's a single drop of water on the court. And hockey stops the game twice to clean up the messy ice.
Football is the only one of the four major sports that is played regardless of weather. And if you've ever been forced to sit through a three-hour slogfest in the cold, driving rain, you'll agree that this is no fun for fans. Frankly, I can't understand why people like to go to football games in Green Bay or Buffalo, but I guess if you're going to be freezing anyway, you might as well enjoy some football. Me, I'd prefer to see a football game from the comfort of my own couch, where beers arefree and tivo allows me to skip over commercials, time outs, and the endless boredom of official review.
LA fans--we have it easy. There's hardly ever been a rain delay at Dodger Stadium, and even USC football is played in brilliant sunshine most of the time. But in the rest of the world, where there is weather, there are consequences. Even the Phillies said they wouldn't have wanted to win the World Series in a shortened game.
I'm usually the first to criticize baseball for having its head up its butt, but Selig made the right call here.
posted by John Rosenthal @ 7:37 AM
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