The Chicago Cubs beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-1, on Sunday at Wrigley Field.
It was an unusual game for many circumstances, but most notably due to a long rain delay.
The weather forced the Cubs to shorten Shota Imanaga’s start to just four innings.
Dodgers starter Gavin Stone could only cover three.
The umpires and those in charge of making the decision to play decided to wait for a long time, and play resumed eventually.
The field, however, wasn’t in its finest shape.
Dodgers infielder Miguel Rojas complained after the loss that the field was just not ready for baseball to be played.
“Miguel Rojas was still upset postgame, saying the state of the field was ‘improper’ to play on and he was standing ‘in a puddle of water’ at 3B. Understood wanting to get the game in, but ‘we’re not trying to get just this game in. We’re trying to play 162 games,’” Dodgers insider Fabian Ardaya tweeted, with Rojas’ quotes.
Miguel Rojas was still upset postgame, saying the state of the field was "improper" to play on and he was standing "in a puddle of water" at 3B.
Understood wanting to get the game in, but "we're not trying to get just this game in. We're trying to play 162 games."
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) April 8, 2024
Playing on a slippery field could not only impact game flow, but it can also be dangerous for infielders and baserunners.
The league probably wanted the game to be played on Sunday because there aren’t any more series between the two teams at Wrigley Field.
They will meet again in September, but in LA.
The game was eventually completed, but Rojas probably had a point when he said that they are “trying to play 162 games.”
He probably referred to the increased odds of sustaining an injury given game conditions.
Those conditions were the same for both teams on the field, but still: the idea is to avoid getting the players in a position to get hurt.