07/16/26 07:51:00
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07/16 19:50 CDT Mets-Phillies start time moved, MLS game between
Vancouver-Chicago ppd. due to wildfire smoke
Mets-Phillies start time moved, MLS game between Vancouver-Chicago ppd. due to
wildfire smoke
PHILADELPHIA (AP) --- The start time for the MLB game between the New York Mets
and the Phillies on Thursday in Philadelphia was moved up an hour due to air
quality concerns because of wildfire smoke from Canada and northern Minnesota,
and an MLS game in Chicago was postponed.
Heavy, pungent wildfire smoke darkened skies in the U.S. from the Great Lakes
to parts of the East Coast, reducing visibility and prompting warnings that
breathing the air outside could be dangerous.
Officials in many cities urged residents to stay inside or wear masks outside
as air quality reached unhealthy to hazardous levels, meaning it's unhealthy
for anyone, regardless of health conditions. The National Weather Service said
a lingering high pressure system has trapped the smoke close to the ground.
The Philadelphia region is experiencing smoky and hazy skies. The game's start
was moved to 6:10 p.m. EDT from 7:10 p.m. It is the only game on the big league
schedule coming out of this week's All-Star break.
"It's definitely different," Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper said on ESPN,
which is broadcasting the game. "Not the greatest idea, I guess, to come out
here and play in this type of weather, but we're doing it."
This is the second time wildfire smoke has affected a game in Philadelphia. In
June 2023, a game between Detroit and Philadelphia was postponed due to poor
air quality related to smoke from Canadian wildfires.
Poor air quality due to wildfire smoke also forced the Major League Soccer game
between the Vancouver Whitecaps and Fire at Chicago's Soldier Field, along with
a scheduled postgame concert, to be postponed. The game, which was expected to
draw 40,000, will be made up on Oct. 6.
Also, the Canadian Premier League postponed Thursday's scheduled game between
Forge FC and Pacific FC that was to be played in Hamilton, Ontario, due to
"worsening air quality issues." The league said on its website that conditions
"deteriorated in the final hours leading up to kickoff."
Trinity Rodman, a member of the U.S. women's national team, said the smokey sky
was difficult to deal with during Wednesday night's NWSL game between the
Washington Spirit and Gotham FC at New York's Citi Field.
Rodman said she wasn't a fan of the hydration breaks every 15 minutes in the
game as the temperature reached into the 90s.
"Air quality was rough," Rodman was quoted as saying by The Athletic. "Not to
make excuses at all, but I think on both sides we were all like, ?another
break, another break, another break.'"
A crowd of more than 42,000 attended the rematch of teams in last season's NWSL
title game. The crowd was a record for a women's sporting event in New York
City.
"If we have to have a hydration break every 15 minutes, then we shouldn't be
playing the game, and that's my opinion," Rodman said. "But at the end of the
day, there's 40,000 people. It's a whole event, so it's really tough. It's just
a really hard situation for everyone to work around."
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AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
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