ARLINGTON, Texas — Yes, the roof is open for Thursday night's Game 4 American League Championship Series between the Texas Rangers and their in-state rival Houston Astros.
And, no, this isn't exactly a common thing at the Rangers' home ballpark of Globe Life Field.
Thursday's game is the first home game the Texas Rangers have played in nearly five months without their ballpark's roof closed.
The last open-air game played at Globe Life Field? That came all the way back on May 21!
(In case you were wondering: Yes, there is an account on X, formerly known as Twitter, that specifically tracks whether the roof at Globe Life Field will be open or closed on a given game night.)
With clear skies and temperatures forecasted to be in the mid- to high 70s all night long, it's easy to see why Major League Baseball made the call to play Game 4 with the roof open.
And let's be clear: It is the MLB's call -- something that both Rangers GM Chris Young and spokesman John Blake made sure to point out when discussing the decision prior to Game 4's start.
The question remains, however: Will the decision to open the roof have any impact on how Game 4 will play out?
Maybe! In the 11 games the Rangers played with the roof open in the early goings of this season, they saw decent returns, going 7-4. That includes their Opening Day game against the Philadelphia Phillies on March 30 -- the only time in the stadium's four seasons that the roof was open before being closed during the middle of a game because of a threat of rain.
Also something to consider: It's safe to say the Astros weren't expecting the roof to be open for Game 4 until the MLB announced that it would be.
Before the game started, Astros manager Dusty Baker said he was under the impression that both teams agreed to keep the roofs closed at each of their retractable roof stadiums throughout the series. Indeed, Games 1 and 2 of the ALCS were played with the roof closed at Minute Maid Park in Houston, just as was the case for Game 3 at Globe Life Field.
"So what changed?” Baker asked.
When pressed on if he expected it to have any affect on the game itself, however, Baker was quick to downplay that it would, pointing out that his team has worked out with the roof open at Globe Life Field before and has a working familiarity with the conditions.
On the other hand, so has the Rangers' Game 4 starter, Andrew Heaney. And, while he boasted a 2-1 record in four open-roof Globe Life Field appearances heading into tonight's contest, he gave up three runs while lasting just two outs into the first inning of Thursday's game.
So... we'll see.
Something else to keep in mind: While Thursday's game represents the first Rangers playoff game with the roof open at Globe Life Field, it's not the first time the roof has been open at the stadium for any MLB playoff contest.
When neutral-site postseason games were played at Globe Life Field during the 2020 season impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the roof was open for 13 of 16 of those games. It was open for all three NL Division Series games, and all seven NLCS games. It was also open for three of the six World Series games. (It was closed for Game 3 of the World Series because of chilly conditions and the chance of rain, then again during Games 5 and 6 because of misty and unseasonably cool temperatures when the Los Angeles Dodgers wrapped up the title.)