CLEVELAND (AP) — The Guardians might as well keep umbrellas in their bat rack.
Cleveland was forced to postpone a celebration and flag-raising ceremony to honor its AL Central title before the opener of a three-game series against Tampa Bay due to a rainy weather forecast.
The pregame pageantry has been pushed back until Saturday — for now.
This is nothing new to the Guardians, who have been dodging rain drops all season.
Due to Cleveland’s disagreeable, ever-changing weather, the Guardians have been rained out 10 times at Progressive Field this season, forcing the club to play a major league-high eight doubleheaders, six at home.
Rays 6, Guardians 5 (11)
Harold Ramírez’s two-run double with two outs in the 11th inning gave Tampa Bay a 6-5 win over Cleveland, helping the Rays move up in the AL wild-card race.
Tampa Bay closed within 1 1/2 games of Toronto atop the AL wild-card chase.
The AL Central champion Guardians had their winning streak stopped at seven.
The Rays won the opener of a nine-game road trip.
The victory came as Tampa Bay’s players and staff kept their eye on Hurricane Ian bearing down on their home state.