DETROIT -- It might sound like a repeat, but weather has once again put the American League Championship Series on hold, pushing back the start time of Wednesday's Game 4 from its originally scheduled time of 4:19 p.m. ET to 6:32 p.m.
A rain system parked itself over southeast Michigan and southwestern Ontario, just west enough to keep Comerica Park under showers for much of the afternoon. Though FOX tentatively said on Twitter that it hoped to start the game around 5:15 p.m., then 5:45, the grounds crew didn't begin removing the tarp until 5:50. Rain stopped falling shortly after 5 p.m.
"We have to be sure we're looking into the future," Peter Woodfork, MLB's senior vice president of baseball operations, said toward the end of the delay.
A security guard keeps watch while rain pelts Comerica Park prior to Game 4 of the ALCS. (Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
When asked by FOX reporter Ken Rosenthal whether MLB expects to play Game 4 without any interruption from inclement weather, Woodfork was optimistic.
"That's our goal," Woodfork said. "That's why we waited this long. We wanted to make sure we could get four hours of relatively dry weather."
The possibility of starting the game and having to stop for an extended period of time, jeopardizing each starting pitcher's chances of finishing a start, is undesirable to all parties.
"Obviously, that's something that neither team wants," said Rangers general manager Jon Daniels said. "Factoring everything in, the forecast looks good. There's always a chance -- it's relatively small -- but we didn't want to get into a situation where all of these fans sat here ... and we'd have to send them home."
Rain has already been a problem in this series. Game 2 of the series was pushed back from Sunday to Monday due to forecasts of a rainy evening in Arlington. The postponement forced the two teams to play Game 2 on what was originally slated to be a workout day, but the extra rest gave some injured Tigers extra time to recuperate.
Tigers relievers were spotted long-tossing in the outfield on Wednesday afternoon, but there was no sign of Game 4 starter Rick Porcello loosening up.
One point of concern for Major League Baseball is the forecast. The National Weather Service calls for a 60 percent of rain on Wednesday night in Detroit, a 30 percent chance of rain on Thursday afternoon and a 70 percent chance on Thursday night. Friday is scheduled to be an off-day between Games 5 and 6, allowing the teams to travel from Detroit back to Texas.
Source : mlb.com
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