vance_the_cubs_fan

Warhawks get their first win over Alabama A&M tonight.

I think if the Brewers miss the playoffs, Ned will be canned.

375,000 in Houston already without power and it's only going to get worse.

I really see no possible way to play the games in Houston, or for the Cubs to make it to Houston tom. The city is going to be complete chaos till probably at least Tuesday. This isn't something you wait out only to find out you can't play on Sunday. They should be finalizing plans tonight to guarantee a game being played on Sunday. At this point, can the Astros get out? Depending on where they are, I think so. There is no major flooding in Houston right now. They couldn't fly out of Houston, but they could catch a bus to Austin or San Antonio and get out. Will they be able to on Saturday? I don't know. One problem I find in McLain's plan is while they may be able to fly the Cubs in, there may be no flooding in downtown, and they may have electricity at MMP; but will they be able to get workers and would it be possible for fans to get to the games? I have tickets, so if they are playing Sunday or they going to let me drive my ass into Houston for some ballgames? Because if I can't, then the Astros still better give me a refund for my tickets.

Well in the article about Miller Park hosting the games on the Astros site, there is an added twist. Link. So, it appears that nothing will be decided until the damage in Houston is assessed. I guess will just have to keep an eye on the weather channel all evening and tomorrow morning.

Just spoke to a friend of mine in Houston. She lives inland and has stayed put. She's already without electricity and it's not even raining there yet. She's further inland than downtown. She doesn't see how they will play a game in Houston.

Bruce weighs in on the Miller Park scenario. Link. I don't doubt the poster from Brewerfan, but the question remains. Were they definitely setting it up or just inquiring could employees come into work if they were to schedule the game? Word is that they also checked in Atlanta as well. There's a possibility that they are setting up to play in Milwaukee, or they may just be checking with venues to see what options they have before making a decision.

Based on everything I'm reading, I can't see them getting the Cubs to Houston on Saturday. Even if they could get there, the city is likely to be a mess. There's going to be flooding, even if the downtown area isn't. Many fans would be coming from other areas, so it's still going to be a sparse crowd, but I guess it would help the Astros make a buck off of the fans unable to get there. I'm still hoping for Atlanta, but it looks like Milwaukee is the leader as far as getting these games if they aren't in Houston.

But this article, posted about forty-five minutes ago, indicates Milwaukee may be where the games are played. Link.

Well, here's the latest from Houston. Link.

If the Cubs go to Atlanta, who wants to meet me there?

Atlanta is a possibility. Link.

Owings is the PTBNL. Link.

Apparently MLB is willing to oblige them. Exactly, funny how a team like the '04 Marlins were just shipped off to a neutral venue yet houston becomes a special situation. That may be because the Marlins only have approximately 500 fans even when they are at home. Dolphin Stadium is a neutral site to the Marlins.

As it appears now, they are in a wait and see mode. The tentative plan is to play them in Houston as a Sunday DH with the final game on Monday, Sunday night game with a DH Monday, or a DH Monday with the final game to be made up at the end of the season. If it appears that even a Monday DH is going to be ruled out after the storm hits, the Sunday-Monday schedule might be moved to a neutral location. If this storm hits as hard as it is predicted on its current path, I can't envision a game there on Sunday and Monday seems unlikely as well. However, the Texans are still planning for their game to be at home Monday, so I can see why the Astros could envision playing there Monday as well. If the NFL believes that a game could be held Monday night, the Astros may believe that they can as well. Color me skeptical.

That same article had this to say...

According to this article, several possibilities are still being considered. Link. So, it appears that if the games cannot be played in Houston on either Sunday or Monday, which I find highly unlikely, the games would be made up at the end of the season if needed.

Houston is still on target for a direct hit. I doubt these games are played Monday, and furthermore, I doubt the Texans get to play their game on Monday either. http://blogs.chron.com/sciguy/archives/sloshguidance091208a.gif http://blogs.chron.com/sciguy/archives/WindSpd11_hgx.jpg http://www.chron.com/weather/stormpulse-ike.html

That makes sense, but trying to fly another team into the city to play does not. What's the status of Houston? I would hope that a major league organization could assist in arranging transportation and accommodations for families as well as players if evacuation is urged. totally agree...we aren't talking some college series here, this is professional baseball...surely they can arrange to get their families out of there...probably should have already started doing it...or maybe they are all just hard-headed and riding it out together...whatever...things will be as they will be and it will all work out alright It's not getting the families out that is the concern. Most of Houston proper has been told not to evacuate. This is partially because it would be logisitically impossible to evacuate 4+ million people which would be the case if the enitre metropolitan area of Houston tried to get out. Thye focused evacuations on the low lying coastal areas. It's very possible that many of the families are going to attempt to ride out the storm, and it is quite possible that the Houston players want to be there with their families. I fully understand why the Cubs didn't want to go into town ahead of the storm, but I can also see why the Astros players didn't want to leave town with the uncertainty of the storm coming. A DH on Monday could be an inconvenience, but it's the Astros perogative to play their home games at home if possible. I think if a bad storm rained out three September Cubs home games, I doubt we Cub fans would want those games moved to another park if there was a chance to play them at home and I doubt the Cubs organization would easily agree to move them either.

Baseball Tonight is saying a Monday DH.

I've read a few places that part of the reason they aren't beginning the series tomorrow somewhere at a neutral site is that the Astros didn't want to leave their families behind during a hurricane. That makes sense to me as aggravating as it can be to the Cubs.

They're now saying Ike is likely to remain a cat 2 hurricane which is some relief to those who thought it would come ashore a cat 3 or stronger. Link.

I called a friend in Houston and she's riding out the storm. She says they are predicting some bad howry there and doesn't see how they will even play on Sunday. We'll see....

Why do I think Lee is going to ground out to third here.

Another run! 2-0!