Sox-A's opener may be at 10 p.m.
There could be bad news for Red Sox fans intending to watch Wednesday's playoff opener against the Oakland A's: There is a possibility the game will not begin until 10 p.m. EDT, according to baseball and television industry sources.
Charles Steinberg, the Red Sox executive vice president for public affairs, said last night the club had been informed by Major League Baseball of the possibility the game would fill the 10 p.m. TV slot on ESPN. "We're waiting for further word from MLB," Steinberg said.
Another Sox official expressed more certainty the game would begin at 10 p.m., but said a final decision had not been reached.
Three playoff games are scheduled Wednesday: the A's-Sox in Oakland in Game 1 of their AL Division Series, the Marlins-Giants in San Francisco, in Game 2 of their NL Division series; and the Braves vs. the NL Central winner, which would be either the Cubs or Astros, in Atlanta, in Game 2. According to a National League executive, the Giants-Marlins game is scheduled for 4 p.m. EDT, "although we've heard every possible time in the last 48 hours," the executive said.
The Braves game would appear to be the game Fox plans to televise in prime time on the East Coast, with the Sox-A's game on ESPN at 10. The scheduling is complicated because two West Coast teams, the Giants and A's, are hosting games Wednesday.
The tentative word on Game 2 of the Sox-A's series is it will begin at 4 p.m. EDT Thursday, with the Yankees and Twins game airing in prime time.
