UPDATE: 9:35 PM first pitch. Would you believe it?!
If you tuned in Friday night to see Aaron Judge's return from a toe injury that first knocked him out on June 3, you're going to have to stay patient a little while longer.
Are the Yankees in a "rain delay" right now in Baltimore? Not exactly. The game was "weather delayed" about 15 minutes before first pitch despite dryness over Camden Yards. As of this article's publication, it still has not yet begun to storm.
But it'd be hard to count on the sky holding up for very much longer. Not wanting to burn starters Gerrit Cole and Grayson Rodriguez, MLB's officials pulled the tarp before this one could get started. Once the rain starts falling, it could be falling for quite a while.
Just like a rehabbing Judge, the Yankees and Orioles will be keeping you on your toes tonight.
Yankees Rain Delay: Camden Yards officials waiting for skies to open up with Weather Delay
Severe thunderstorm watch in the Baltimore area until 11 PM. Sounds "unfavorable" to us.
If the Yankees and Orioles are ultimately forced into a doubleheader tomorrow, that'll make Aaron Boone's stated plan to rest Judge for one game of the series even easier to execute. He'll play the day game, rest for the night game, then be back for Sunday Night Baseball. Makes sense to us.
Don't believe us? Believe the clouds. Woof.
Judge isn't 100% and won't be for the rest of the season, but doctors have assured him he won't do more ligament damage by playing through pain in Aug. and Sept. (at least that's what they're telling us). The sooner he gets back, the better.
Stay tuned here for the rest of the night. We're as itchy for Judge content as the rest of you, but if they're waiting through clear skies, there must be something pretty disastrous on the other side.