The first Mets Vs Phillies game after the All-Star break was moved up an hour to 6:10 p.m. ET on Thursday and still had to be played through wildfire smoke that left Citizens Bank Park hazy. Christian Scott handled the conditions best, throwing 5 2/3 scoreless innings as the Mets beat the Phillies 4-1.
The change came because the air was expected to get worse after sunset, even though forecasters had first expected it to improve. Phillies players learned a little before 4 p.m. that the start time was changing, and both clubs cut back their time outside to keep as much of the smoke out of the day as possible. The Phillies limited outdoor pregame work. The Mets condensed theirs and spent as little time as they could on the field after being away for three days.
That mattered because this was not a normal July night in Philadelphia. The smoke had drifted down from wildfires in northern Ontario, and the haze was thick enough that the four-man umpire crew kept checking with players during the game to make sure everyone still wanted to go on. By Wednesday night, the same air had already been bad enough at Citi Field to force frequent hydration breaks during a game between Gotham FC and the Washington Spirit, a reminder that the conditions were not easing everywhere at the same pace.
Brandon Marsh said it was hard to see through the smoke by the eighth inning, and Bryce Harper was even blunter after the game, saying the teams were playing in weather that was not the greatest idea. Scott, who was on the mound for most of the night, said the air got thick late and felt like breathing metal. He added, with a smile, that a spoonful of adversity never hurt anyone.
There was no clean answer for how safe the night really was. The game went on, the teams adapted, and the smoke never fully cleared, which left the next decision hanging on the same forecast that forced the early start in the first place. If the air was already bad enough to move the game up once, the question for the rest of the series is how much worse it has to get before playing stops being the simpler option.
