It started sprinkling pretty lightly a few innings ago. Then it got worse. Then it got bad. Ramon Santiago led off the top of the fifth with a line drive double to left, and then it was the groundskeepers' time to shine, as they sprung into action and pulled the tarp over the infield. It was pouring, and the conditions were unplayable.

The rain delay was on, and that's when FOX's weather guy told us it could last a few hours. Here's one image:

As ominous as that looks, though, the weather is traveling in a northward direction, not an eastward direction. So the ballpark's right on the edge. If that were traveling eastward, oh man, oh man, nope. No more baseball.

As I've been writing this, the rain has lightened, and there's some optimism that the delay could last as little as, say, 30 minutes. That would be way better, and it would even allow Ron Washington and Jim Leyland to keep their starting pitchers in the game, if they wanted. That said, there's just no knowing for sure. The cell that caused this delay wasn't on the radar 15 minutes before it arrived. This could go on for longer, or it could let up and then start again, or...or pretty much anything. Stay tuned! Or don't.