” What do you expect when they build a ballpark on the ocean”
On May 27, 1986 — ” “It’s the spookiest thing I’ve ever seen. Hey, when you build a building on the ocean, what do you expect? You expect fog. They should blame themselves for building it on the ocean.” – Oil Can Boyd, after a game at Cleveland Stadium, located on the shore of Lake Erie, is postponed due to fog in the 6th inning.
The Red Sox are credited with a 2-0 victory when the game cannot be continued due to the dense fog that rolls into Cleveland Stadium. The postponed contest, which ends with the Tribe having baserunners on first and second with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, prompts Boston’s right-hander Oil Can Boyd to infamously blame the lack of visibility on the ballpark’s proximity to the ocean, not nearby Lake Erie.
“In my 23 years (as an American League umpire), this is the first time I’ve ever seen fog like this sock us in,” Barnett said. “We waited lVSt hours and then went into the outfield. Any fly ball would have still been impossible (to see).” During the first delay which lasted 15 minutes Cleveland coach Bobby Bonds was asked to hit fly balls to Red Sox right fielder Dwight Evans to test thevisibilty. “He (Evans) said he couldn’t see the ball out there, but I could, and he’s a better outfielder than me. But I can’t blame him if you can get a win that way then you do it,” Corrales said. But Boston Manager John McNamara thought the situation was handled properly. “Armas had trouble with that fly ball. I didn’t want fly balls dropping because of the fog. I think it was handled fair for both sides,” McNamara said.
