Mother Nature, Rules, Late Swoon All Keep Bowie Out of Playoffs

The Baysox had to deal with two of the toughest things in baseball—blowing a late-season lead and then just missing the playoffs on the final day thanks to something weird with the rules.

Bowie held the lead for the final playoff spot in the Eastern League’s Western Division but faded badly down the stretch. The Baysox lost eight of 10 to knock themselves into third place, and even though they won the final two games after that slide, Richmond took the final playoff spot by a half-game.

But Richmond needed a break from the rules to take that playoff spot. The Flying Squirrels held a half-game lead over the Baysox heading into the final day. If Richmond lost and Bowie won, the Baysox would make the playoffs.

Mother Nature then stepped in. Richmond and Altoona were tied at one when the Flying Squirrels took a 2-1 lead in the top of the eighth. The rain came and the inning couldn’t be completed.

That would usually mean the game goes back to whatever the score was at the last completed inning—which was 1-1 after seven.

But the Eastern League sent out a memo saying that Official Baseball Rule 4.12 (b)(4)(i) applies, which states that any suspended game “not completed prior to the last scheduled game between the two teams” during the championship season shall become a called game. If such a game becomes a called game and has progressed far enough to become a regulation game, and one team is ahead, the team that is ahead shall be declared the winner.”

Therefore, Richmond got the 2-1 win, which locked up the final playoff spot and locked Bowie out.

What made it even tougher for Bowie to swallow was the team won its finale, edging Erie, 3-2.

So the technicality hurt the Baysox, as did Mother Nature. Bowie had so many rainouts in the final days that they wound up playing one game less than Richmond—and if the Baysox had played and won that one more game, they would have tied the Flying Squirrels for the final playoff spot.

But the Baysox couldn’t do much about it and finished with a 75-66 record, improving a lot in the second half of the season despite the frustrating ending.

“I’m really proud of all our guys,” said Bowie manager Gary Kendall. “You always talk about development and seeing players get better, and each night you go out there and you see players do something different or something better and eventually it begins to click.”