Friday's Cubs-Astros game might be moved up six hours

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Hurricane Ike, approaching the Texas coastline and expected to reach land this weekend, might affect the NL Central and wild-card races.

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AP Photo/NOAA
Hurricane Ike is expected to be a Category 3 storm with sustained winds over 110 mph when it hits the Texas coastline.



The Astros are considering changing the time of their game with the Chicago Cubs on Friday from 8:05 p.m. ET to 2:05 p.m. ET because of Ike, which is projected to hit the city.
A final decision will be announced sometime Thursday. Officials say the possibility of moving Saturday's game for the same reason will be determined later.
Hurricane Ike, currently in the Gulf of Mexico, is projected to be a Category 3 storm when it hits land.
Cubs shortstop Ryan Theriot, a native of Baton Rouge, La., said he is hesitant to travel with his team to Houston with the storm looming.
"I don't want to go," Theriot said Wednesday. "To me, I understand why the Astros want to play those games there. They're right there in the wild card and playing well. That storm is going to turn, and if it does turn, and they evacuate the city, then what are you going to do? Now we're stuck.
"You hop on a bus and go where -- go with everybody else?" Theriot said. "Take a bus from Houston to Chicago? [Hurricanes] are so hard to predict. The last one was supposed to go west, and it ends up turning and crushing Baton Rouge.
"Once it makes landfall, it could go one way or the other," he said. "I know they have a dome and the rain doesn't affect you, but if you have no power and no cabs to get anything to eat and you're stuck, that's no fun for anybody."
Cubs first baseman Derrek Lee proposed playing the series at a neutral site.
''Let's go to a neutral site, play three and get it over with,'' he said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. ''Why risk it?''
The Sun-Times, citing an unnamed source, reported that playing the series at a neutral site was unlikely. Instead, according to the source, Major League Baseball might take advantage of a scheduled off day for both teams Monday to use four days to get three games played.
The first-place Cubs currently lead the NL Central by 4½ games over the Milwaukee Brewers. The Astros, meanwhile, trail the Brewers by four games in the NL wild-card race.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

 

[D2bets]

That's ludicrous. They're going to get stuck there. Besides, that's 1pm central. Cubs are playing tonight at 7:15pm central in St. Louis. They may not finish until close to 11pm. Not sure how long a flight it is exactly or when their flight is scheduled for (or even if incoming flights will happen) but by the time they got there they're going to have to go right to the stadium with a hurricane approaching. Ridiculous.

Move the games somewhere else and let poor Drayton keep the proceeds if he wants.

 

[Objection]

the talk right now is a double -header on sunday and a game on monday or a double -header on monday with a single game on sunday

 

[maxdemo]

That's ludicrous. They're going to get stuck there. Besides, that's 1pm central. Cubs are playing tonight at 7:15pm central in St. Louis. They may not finish until close to 11pm. Not sure how long a flight it is exactly or when their flight is scheduled for (or even if incoming flights will happen) but by the time they got there they're going to have to go right to the stadium with a hurricane approaching. Ridiculous.

Move the games somewhere else and let poor Drayton keep the proceeds if he wants.

Gotta Love It:toast: Cubs are more worried about Ike than playing Baseball....maybe we can get another sweep this weekend!!


BTW: Houston airports remained open Thursday morning, as airport officials said airlines and the FAA usually wait for about 55 mph winds before deciding whether to close an airport.

 

[D2bets]

Gotta Love It:toast: Cubs are more worried about Ike than playing Baseball....maybe we can get another sweep this weekend!!


BTW: Houston airports remained open Thursday morning, as airport officials said airlines and the FAA usually wait for about 55 mph winds before deciding whether to close an airport.

I don't think the Cubs are too worried about it, but I sure hope MLB is. No reason to put teams in a dangerous situation they don't belong in. If the situation is going to be OK by Sunday then a Sunday/Monday DH and single seems to make sense. But flying in tomorrow afternoon hoping to beat the storm by hours and then being trapped is nuts. Really bad idea IMO.

 

[FairWarning]

Gotta Love It:toast: Cubs are more worried about Ike than playing Baseball....maybe we can get another sweep this weekend!!


BTW: Houston airports remained open Thursday morning, as airport officials said airlines and the FAA usually wait for about 55 mph winds before deciding whether to close an airport.

I would think Houston players are more worried about their families and homes than playing the Cubs. Why don't they play the games in Arlington and have day/night DH's with the Rangers?

 

[D2bets]

I would think Houston players are more worried about their families and homes than playing the Cubs. Why don't they play the games in Arlington and have day/night DH's with the Rangers?

That's an interesting idea.

Just read that no flights in or out after 9am tomorrow. Sending the Cubs to Houston before this storm is just not going to happen. Maybe they can wait until Sunday and hope that the situation is playable then, but I don't see any way imaginable that they are going to play games in Houston on Friday or Saturday. You're going to trap tens of thousands of people in the stadium with a hurricane bearing down and evacuation orders in place? Come on now. One of three possibilities:
a) games are moved to a different city this weekend
b) they wait it out and hope to play Sunday/Monday
c) they cancel and maybe play at the end of the season.

Moving the game earlier on Friday and quite possibly trapping all those people with a life-threatening hurricane bearing down is not a real option.

 

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Guys I know most of you have never been in a Hurricane in Houston....its nothing like Florida or near an ocean...I live in Katy and that some 63 miles from the coast. Heavy Rain and some wind gust around 50-70 MPH but it doesnt last days....just hours.

BTW most Astros players live in the Woodlands, Katy....ect far from Galveston and if it is a concern then they have the $$ to fly them up north. Houston is focused and ready to play.

 

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Astros owner Drayton McLane expects to learn about noon today how the club will proceed for Friday's series opener against the Chicago Cubs at Minute Maid Park.

As of 10 a.m., McLane said the Cubs were still expected to fly in tonight, but the key will be fans' safety. McLane said the team is working closely with the emergency management services.

"The most important thing is people's safety. We're trying to do what is best for all our fans and their families. We'll know more later today," McLane said.

 

[D2bets]

Astros owner Drayton McLane expects to learn about noon today how the club will proceed for Friday's series opener against the Chicago Cubs at Minute Maid Park.

As of 10 a.m., McLane said the Cubs were still expected to fly in tonight, but the key will be fans' safety. McLane said the team is working closely with the emergency management services.

"The most important thing is people's safety. We're trying to do what is best for all our fans and their families. We'll know more later today," McLane said.

What about the players' and related team personnel safety -- both Astros and Cubs? If satefy is the concern then they are not going to play until after the storm and danger passes.

 

[Objection]

BY GORDON WITTENMYER Staff Reporter

ST. LOUIS — Indications are the Cubs will avoid flying to Houston after their game tonight in St. Louis against the Cardinals to avoid the path of Hurricane Ike, according to a baseball source.

The Cubs are expected to return to Chicago instead of following original plans of flying to Houston to start a three-game series against the Astros on Friday.

Weather-service projections have Ike hitting land near Houston sometime late Friday or early Saturday.

The Cubs are awaiting word on when and where the series will be played. One scenario has the teams agreeing on a neutral site for this weekend. Another one has the series being delayed until after the regular season and only being played if necessary for playoff positioning - and that's a scenario neither team wants.

The Cubs had suggested the Astros fly to St. Louis to play the series there, but that was rejected, possibly because it would give the Cubs the advantage of not having to fly anywhere

 

[D2bets]

The advantage of not having to fly anywhere? LOL Come on now. How about if they make them fly on a plane for a few hours somewhere?

 

[maxdemo]

D2Bets
Just deal w/ it the Cubs will either play here in Houston this weekend or at the end of the year. And if it is at the end of the year I can only hope that your cubs are playing so called AAA players because we need the wins...thank you

 

[D2bets]

D2Bets
Just deal w/ it the Cubs will either play here in Houston this weekend or at the end of the year. And if it is at the end of the year I can only hope that your cubs are playing so called AAA players because we need the wins...thank you

Could be. I'm just pretty sure they are not going to play on Friday/Saturday. They will probably just hope to get some games in on Sunday/Monday and then make up the rest as needed at the end. But if they can't get any games in this weekend that would be a real mess. Then again I think the Cubs will have it clinched and the Astros will be out of it by then. But would it not be funny if on the last day of the reg season the Cubs are playing Mil and the Cubs have it clinched but a win in that game means they have to go to Houston? LOL Bad news Bears walk off the field and give to the Brewers to avoid going to Houston.

That's the kind of sticky situation they should really avoid.

IMO go to neutral site. That is exactly what Florida did in September 2004 with a hurricane bearing down. It is not without precedent. Suck it up. We can always to some tag days for Drayton.

 

[BostonBettor]

Game has been postponed.

 

[D2bets]

Marlins storming into Windy CityBy Mike Dodd, USA TODAY
CHICAGO — After splitting a four-game weekend series with the Cubs in Wrigley Field, the Florida Marlins will try to bring a touch of Pro Player Stadium to the south side of Chicago for two "home" games against the Montreal Expos.
The threat of Hurricane Ivan prompted Major League Baseball and the Marlins on Friday to move the first two games of their series against the Expos from Miami to U.S. Cellular Field, home of the White Sox. They'll play day games Monday and Tuesday before sparse crowds.
Marlins president David P. Samson said the club is flying up about a dozen game-day personnel, including mascot Billy The Marlin and the in-game entertainment crew to blare the players' introduction music and team videos.
"We're trying to make it so the players feel as much at home as possible," Samson said.
The Marlins plan to return home Tuesday night unless the storm, which is expected to hit the west coast of Florida and the panhandle, changes direction. They'll play the final three games of the Expos series Wednesday and Thursday. All tickets for the two games in Chicago are lower-deck general admission, at $15 each, with $5 of every ticket donated to the Florida Hurricane Relief Fund.
The Marlins will be the home team and occupy the White Sox clubhouse, which former Florida third base coach Ozzie Guillen now calls home.
"(I was) reading in the papers, Ozzie said we're going to get in his clubhouse, and he's worried about me stealing his wife's picture," cracked Marlins manager Jack McKeon, of the White Sox skipper. "I thought he was going to leave me some cigars, for crying out loud."
U.S. Cellular Field was a logical place to play the moved games because the Marlins were already in town, and the White Sox remain on the road until Friday. Even though the hurricane is now expected to miss Miami, Samson ruled out returning home early because the risk of a rainout today and Tuesday is significant, and the Marlins have no makeup dates available.
McKeon downplayed the situation Sunday. "We love Chicago," he said, during the Marlins' first visit back to Wrigley since their stunning victories in Games 6 and 7 of the NLCS last fall.
Monday's game marks the first time a major league team has played a neutral-site game not originally on the schedule since April 15, 1998, when the New York Yankees were forced to move to Shea Stadium after a 500-pound steel joint fell into the seats at Yankee Stadium.

 

[D2bets]

Cubs-Astros expected to be postponed
09/11/2008 4:19 PM ETBy Carrie Muskat / MLB.com

ST. LOUIS -- The Cubs' weekend games in Houston against the Astros are expected to be postponed, and the Cubs will head back to Chicago after Thursday's game against St. Louis to avoid Hurricane Ike, which is churning in the Gulf of Mexico and heading in the direction of Texas. The Cubs and Astros are scheduled to open a three-game series Friday at Minute Maid Park. There was talk about having the Cubs and Astros play a day game Friday instead of a night game, but all plans are on hold.
The Cubs expected to make an official announcement prior to Thursday's game against the Cardinals. The Astros will

 

[maxdemo]

The Astros have postponed Friday's game against the Chicago Cubs at Minute Maid Park.

Astros owner Drayton McLane said the team is working with MLB commissioner Bud Selig to determine when the game can be made up.

"We're trying to be careful and mindful of our fans safety," McLane said. "People in the greater Houston area and Harris County have been encouraged to stay home. School has been canceled and we just want to do the right thing. We don't have a date now. We just wanted to let the fans know as soon as possible."


McLane said the Astros are hopeful of rescheduling the game at home sometime later in the season.

 

[maxdemo]

The games WILL NOT be played at a neutural site....but in Houston at the end of the season.

See you then Cubbies!!!

 

[D2bets]

If they do wait until after the regular season, just imagine the scenarios. Cubs end the season with three games in Milwaukee. Now let's say the Cubs enter that series up 4 games. It's over. But wait. Let's say Milwaukee is tied with Houston for the wild card. If I'm the Cubs I toss every game to avoid flying to Houston for 3 games in 2 days heading into the playoffs. Hell, I'd just forfeit.

They really should move this series somewhere else this weekend.