NSI Gameday Weather - ALCS Game 1 Will be Cold and Damp, But Playable

Well, this story has been beaten to death all week. There is rain in the forecast for ALCS games 1 and 2 at Yankee Stadium and there is definitely a chance of delays, postponements and general disarray. The good news is that game 1 will almost definitely go off without a hitch. Game 2 is where the problems are. As always, Steve DiMartino of NYNJPAWeather.com is here to navigate us through the raindrops.

Although the first coastal storm will be well out into the Atlantic and the second coastal storm well to the south, the Bronx will still be under the influence of some rather raw conditions.

Expect overcast skies with drizzle and scattered showers. The precipitation will remain light and intermittent. Winds will be from the northeast around 10 to 20 mph with gusts to 30 mph. Temperatures will be between 42 and 44 degrees through the game. Not the best playing conditions for sure.

Game Delay Potential: Minor: Showers may lead to some delays, but the conditions should remain playable for the most part.

Game Postponement: None: Showers and drizzle will be light enough to play through with no postponement expected.

Game 2: 7:57 PM vs Angels: Game 1 conditions may be playable, but Saturday night will be anything but. Rain will be heavy at times with a strong northeasterly wind around 20 to 35 mph with higher gusts. Temperatures will be in the mid 40’s. The rain is going to be a serious problem here with the start of the rain beginning well before the game is expected to start and continuing on through Sunday morning.

This is a classic good news/bad news situation. A rainout on Saturday will still reek havoc on the Yankees rotational plans. You can be sure that we'll provide updates whenever information becomes available.

If you're heading out to the game tonight, bundle up - it will be football weather out there!

Previous weather posts from this week have been consolidated and will appear after the jump.

Update (10/15/09 - 10:00 AM): Instead of starting ANOTHER weather post, here is the latest from Steve DiMartino of NYNJPAWeather.com. The big news is that he really believes they are going to get the game on Friday in. As for Saturday, that's a different story:

I think the Yankees will get into a break in the steady rainfall after 8 PM. Conditions won't be pleasant, but they will be playable. A few showers could cause some delays, but I think they'll get the game in. Temperatures will be around 40 with a stiff northeasterly wind. Not pretty at all.

Saturday night on the other hand is just going to be ugly. Steady rain, strong winds, and very cool temperatures. The heaviest rain will be stuck over central New Jersey, but clearly conditions will not warrant favorable playing conditions. I wouldn't be surprise if MLB tries to wait things out, but Saturday night is not looking good.

Better conditions can be expected by Sunday afternoon however, and if a postponement does happen, I would expect the game to be played Sunday afternoon or evening.

By now, all of the mainstream media outlets are reporting the impending rainstorm that is bearing down on on the Tri-State area. As always, we plan on providing wall to wall weather coverage on the day of the games so that everyone knows what to expect.

Unlike other rainy days in New York City this summer (there were plenty), any rainouts this weekend will seriously affect the strategy and outlook for the entire American League Championship Series. For that reason, we checked in with Steve DiMartino of NYNJPAWeather.com who provides us with an early look at the chances of there being baseball in the Bronx.

Through this period, I would say that Friday night would be the "best" time period to play, as the rain will be the lightest and more scattered than any other time period of potential game times. In short, there is a very good chance both of these games will be rained out and will have to be played at some point at the start of the week. Even much of the day on Monday looks to be rather wet.

Steve is about to kick off a live chat (8:30 PM on Wednesday night) to discuss the storm, so be sure to head over to NYNJPAWeather.com and ask your questions.

If you are interested in some of the MSM weather coverage, Joel Sherman of the NY Post has laid out some makeup options in case they can't play one of the games. Meanwhile, Sam Borden is also all over the weather situation and tells us where to get the latest information.

We're unsure what MLB will do if the entire weekend is a washout. We do know that 2009 will forever go down as the year that made a retractable roof look like a viable financial option for baseball stadiums in New York City.