Rain Delay

AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Funny how a rain delay of more than two hours and the cold front that came in behind can play havoc with a major golf tournament such as the 64th Masters. It kept the final pairing of yesterday's third round from teeing off until after 4 p.m. and prevented the two front- runners from finishing up until this morning. It forced those in charge of the tournament to do something never done here before: they permitted CBS to televise the last few groups playing on the heretofore mysterious front nine for the first time in history.

For the second consecutive night, Orioles fans streamed into Camden Yards wearing their orange, twirling their “BUCKle Up” towels and surviving a first-pitch rain delay in hopes their Orioles could beat the bullies of the American League East. It wasn't easy; they had to overcome fielding and baserunning errors, a solid performance by Oriole-killer Andy Pettitte and a wild play at the plate in the first inning. But, if nothing else, these surprising Orioles have shown resilience all season.

Dave Johnson, who pitches for the Orioles tonight in the series opener with Seattle at Memorial Stadium, is an example of statistics not always telling it like it is."I'm feeling great, and I've been throwing the ball well," says Johnson, who was the Orioles' leading winner last year with a 13-9 record. "But I realize the stats don't show that."Johnson, of Middle River, has a 1-2 record and an earned run average of 8.79 after three starts. But he can explain that."I threw well in the first two starts and then I had the one bad outing in Chicago," he says, "but that was the night we had the two-hour rain delay."

CHASKA, Minn. -- When play was halted yesterday afternoon at Hazeltine National Golf Club in the opening round of the 91st United States Open, Tom Byrum did not feel particularly enthusiastic about his game.He had finished the first four holes and was 1-over par. On top of that, Byrum thought he had let down a number of friends who had come from South Dakota to watch him play. But when he returned, more than two hours later, Byrum's perspective had changed dramatically.So did the way this Open would be remembered.

CHASKA, Minn. -- It was, literally, the calm after the storm. When the rain stopped, when the winds quieted, when the commotion ended, Hazeltine National Golf Club relented.The course that had caused such a stir in its first U.S. Open appearance 21 years ago gave in last night to a number of players, most notably Nolan Henke and Payne Stewart.Both played most of yesterday's opening round following a rain delay of more than two hours and the death of one spectator. Each shot a brilliant 5-under-par 67 to share the lead in the 91st Open.

Leo Gomez will have surgery to repair his damaged left wrist either tomorrow or Friday.The decision was made yesterday after consultation with Dr. Hugh Baugher, who will perform the operation. It won't be known until after surgery how long Gomez will be out, but an optimistic estimate is three to four weeks.Gomez has been on the disabled list since July 8 with what had been described as tendinitis. Further examination revealed a cyst, which will be removed during the operation."When I talked to Leo [yesterday]

Anna Nordqvist might be a rookie on the LPGA tour, but she's already showing a flair for the dramatic and a touch of the clutch. For the second straight day, the 22-year-old Swede sank a long birdie putt on her final hole. For the second straight day, it was the margin at the top of the leader board in the McDonald's LPGA Championship. After waiting out a two-hour, 20-minute rain delay, and with darkness approaching at Bulle Rock in Havre de Grace, Nordqvist rolled in a 20-foot putt on the 15th hole to wrestle the lead from Lindsey Wright.

Back in the beginning, when we were still breaking in the shiny new digs at Camden Yards, there was the First Game, the First Win, the First Night Game, the First Loss, the First Sunday Game, the First Grand Slam, the First Rain Delay, the First Ball Off The Tall Wall in Right, the First Todd Frohwirth Glove and Cap Throw, and, of course, the memorable First Sam Horn Triple.Then there was the First Rise in Ticket Prices. No, wait. Make that the First Annual Rise in Ticket Prices.You figured that had to be it, right?

PHILADELPHIA -- Ed Rendell, the mayor of Philadelphia, didn't show much respect for Todd Stottlemyre, who will pitch Game 4 of the World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays here tonight.During a visit to Toronto, Rendell was critical of the Blue Jays' pitching staff, particularly Stottlemyre. "I could envision them [the Phillies] getting swept by a combination of the White Sox's pitching and the Blue Jays' hitting," said Rendell."But not this pitching staff. If Frank Thomas could hit a ball 430 feet off Stottlemyre, I could hit one 270. I'd like to bat against him."

Joie Chitwood is a weather guy this time of year, constantly checking for updates online. Will it rain? Will there be lightning? Will bad weather steal the thunder from his nighttime spectacle Saturday night? "Those are the elements that you have to deal with," Chitwood, president of Daytona International Speedway, said Tuesday. "You can come up with every plan you want to, but the weather is the wild card. It's very frustrating. As I start looking at weather updates 10 days out, all it does is create more concern, but hopefully we'll get lucky.