Red Sox-Cubs Finale Moved to Tropicana Field for Sunday — SkimNews
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- MLB relocated the Red Sox-Cubs Game 162 to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg for Sunday afternoon after forecasting rain throughout Saturday and Sunday in Boston from an incoming nor'easter.
- The teams played a doubleheader Friday — which the Red Sox swept — to get ahead of the weather before flying to Florida late Friday and taking Saturday off.
- Cubs manager Craig Counsell publicly objected to an earlier plan to play Saturday in Boston, saying MLB 'never move[s] games up and especially within a five-day window of a starting rotation,' and the league accommodated by keeping the game on Sunday.
- The Cubs entered the finale 1½ games back of the Padres for the top NL wild card after San Diego lost later Friday, giving Sunday's relocated game real seeding consequences for Chicago.
- The Red Sox are locked into the No. 3 seed in the American League, with both clubs opening wild-card series Tuesday — which is why neither wanted to push Game 162 to Monday.
- The league's first plan was to play the third game Saturday in Boston ahead of the rain; worsening forecast forced the second change of site and date.
Why it matters: Both teams open wild-card series Tuesday, which made a Monday make-up impossible and drove MLB to a neutral dome — an extraordinary step for a regular-season finale. The Cubs' rotation objection forced the league to keep the game on Sunday, and Chicago's 1½-game deficit to San Diego means the relocated finale still carries NL wild-card seeding implications even though Boston's slot is already set.
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