tommyo@ihuxw.UUCP (Tom O`Connor) (08/29/84)
As has already been said, the Cubs will certainly lose their home field advantage by installing temporary lights at the Frienly Confines. Who knows what the place will look like with lights? There could be shadows here or there, or the perception of the speed or location of the ball would not be the same as in the daytime. I heard Jimmy Piersall talk a little about the subject last night on Channel 11 in Chic. I said that temporary lights are terrible to play under as opposed to regular fixtures. The angle of the light, etc. Having played night ball, I can attest to the fact that things do look different at night. The Cubs should not be punished for playing in a park without lights. Bowie Kuhn would certainly end his reign as Comissioner on a low note if he forced the Cubs to install lights. Besides, if baseball was meant to be played at night, then Mr. Doubleday would have invented the light bulb! The next 2 1/2 weeks should really tell the story. The Cubs go on their last long road trip, with stops in Atlanta(3), Montreal(2), then 2 in Philly and a big 3 game series in NY on Sept 7-9. Then they come back home and take on Mont., Phil., and N.Y. again. With a magic number of 27 and counting, GO CUBS!!! Tom O`Connor ihuxw!tommyo
david@fisher.UUCP (David Rubin) (08/30/84)
[I know the ball's here somewhere...]
Cubs fans, stop griping. Baseball is legally obligated to have weekday
games played at night during the playoffs. Giving this guarantee
netted each team (including the Cubs) an extra $700,000 over the life
of the contract. Evidently, management did not think enough of the
Cubs' prospects to insist upon a more flexible, and less lucrative,
contract.
Thus, temporary lights are mandated should the Cubs hold on. Unless
the Cubs prefer Comiskey...
David Rubin
{allegra|astrovax|princeton}!fisher!davidrs55611@ihuxk.UUCP (Robert E. Schleicher) (08/30/84)
An article in the Chicago Tribune stated that there have been initial "sounding-out" inquiries from the commissioner's office to the Cubs about whether pushing out the start of the Series to 10/13 would be OK. Since the NL has home status for the Series this year, an Oct. 13 start would mean day games at Wrigley Field on Sat. and Sunday (13th and 14th), play three week-night games at the AL city, then return for games 6 and 7 the following weekend (20th and 21st). This sounds like a pretty good idea to me, although it means no weekend day games at the AL city. I think the Series would be starting 4-5 days later than normal, however. Bob Schleicher ihuxk!rs55611 AT&T Bell Laboratories, Naperville, Ill.