With the rain still coming down pretty hard, CC Sabathia made quick work of the Tigers in the top of the 2nd inning. Unfortunately, Justin Verlander couldn’t return to the mound in the bottom half to do the same because of a rain delay being called.
After a Victor Martinez ground out to Alex Rodriguez, Sabathia struck out Alex Avila and Ryan Raburn on nine pitches, taking advantage of the pouring rain obscuring the vision of the Tigers’ hitters. After the inning, the umpires decided it was time to put the tarp on the field and delay the game.
At first thought, it seemed sketchy because of how it was decided after an inning by Sabathia before Verlander could get back out there. But Sabathia did slip on his last pitch and I think the Tigers would rather Verlander not pitch on a dangerous, slippery hill. Either way, the game probably should’ve been called after the first inning, as it was clearly down pouring.
The forecast appears to be clearing up soon, but there’s supposedly an even heavier rainfall on its way for after midnight, so this one needs to start back up again here soon.