Atlanta Braves final home series threatened by Hurricane Ian

The Atlanta Braves enter the final ten days of the season one game out of first with the Mets and Hurricane Ian coming to town Friday.

The Atlanta Braves aren’t dead yet. Thanks to some voodoo magic in Oakland ,Monday’s complete-game shutout from Bryce Elder, and some potential Marlin magic (in progress as this is being posted) the Braves have now played the same number of games as their rival and are genuinely one game out in the lost column.

The only way the Braves are guaranteed to win the east is to win their last eight games:  even if the Braves finish 7-1 and the Mets 6-2, New York would win the division unless Atlanta sweeps this weekend’s series.

No problem; the Atlanta Braves have two eight-game winning streaks this year and are capable of doing it again. However, there’s another player in the game named Ian, and he thinks everyone needs a shower.

Will Atlanta Braves series move?

Hurricane Ian is supposed to hit Florida somewhere south of Tampa as a category 4 beast with winds well over 100 mph early Wednesday morning.

The National Weather Service projects a 20%-30% chance that the Atlanta area will see tropical-storm-force winds by Saturday evening, and NOAA projects between two and four inches of rain for the Atlanta area.

Justin Toscano reported earlier today that discussions between the Atlanta Braves, Mets, and MLB are happening concerning the series, but those talks did not include specific alternate locations for the games should they decide a move is warranted,

Hurricane Harvey forced the Astros to play their home games on the road in August 2017 when the storm slammed into Houston. If it happens this year, PNC Park in Pittsburgh, The Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati, and Globe Life Field are the closest and most realistic options.

It would take at least 24 hours’ notice to arrange to reposition both teams, The  Braves would lose three sold-out games worth of revenue, and fans would lose the last three regular-season chances to see their team.

It will take a significant risk that the team cannot get the games in for MLB to take such an impactful decision.

What to expect

I doubt the league will attempt to move the first game from Friday to Thursday. It’s possible the teams could agree on an earlier start time Friday or play a doubleheader and hope they get the third game in; barring those options, we’re going to see windy games with rain delays that may last a very long time.

Those options are bad for both teams but affect the Wildcard team the most as it puts increased strain on the bullpens with no time to recover. Soggy fields and blowing rain increase the chance of injury and significantly increase the likelihood of the championship being decided by the weather instead of the talent.

That’s a wrap

There’s no margin for error; the season ends next Wednesday, and the Wildcard games begin Friday. I hope Ian wanders off into the Atlantic and leaves the games untouched.

While I complain about the weather and the lack of a retractable roof when everyone knows climate change is real. While praying for an Atlanta Braves victory, don’t forget that the real story is the hell that residents of Florida will face over the next few days and weeks.