MLB Rule 4.12 (a)

Last week in Pittsburgh, I was able to catch 2 Cubs wins in one day -- and I didn't attend a double-header. How can that be? Well I'll gladly let you know.

On Tuesday night, in the top of the 7th inning, the Cubs scored 4 runs to take the lead over the Pirates, 6-5 (thanks to a Cliff Floyd bomb into the Allegheny River). In the bottom of the seventh, with one out, and the count at 1 ball and 2 strikes, the skies opened up and the umpires delayed the game. After 2 hours, they suspended the game - it would be resumed the following day. I had never heard of this situation before.

Apparently, there's a new MLB rule this season regarding suspended games - 4.12 (a). To paraphrase, if the visiting team scores 1 or more runs in the top half of the inning to take the lead in the game, and the game is delayed or postponed due to weather in the bottom half of the inning, the game will be suspended and resumed at the next meeting.

This was great news for Cub fans. In the past, if a game was called in the bottom half of the inning, the score would resort to the score at the end of the previous inning, and the game would be called. So, if this game had happened last year, the Cubs would have lost the game. With the new rule, they resumed the game the next day, at the exact point it was suspended!

My buddies and I had tickets to the Wednesday game, so we got to see the final 2 1/2 innings of the previous game, plus the full scheduled game, all for the low low PNC Park price of $26.00. Oh yeah, the seats were 2 rows from the field too. And even better, the Cubs won BOTH games. Maybe I was too hard on them in my earlier post. Ever since I ranted and decided to put my faith in the Red Sox, the Cubs have gone 8-3, have a 5 game winning streak, and are back up to 2nd place in the NL Central. Although, I'm still not convinced it will last. I hope I'm proven wrong.