Smoke from nearby wildfires creates eerie baseball scene

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — The Oakland Coliseum lights shone brightly for miles through a sunless, smoky sky in the middle of the afternoon — hours before they usually would be on for a night baseball game. By mid-morning across San Francisco Bay, the Giants’ Oracle Park resembled a black-and-orange horror scene.

A number of Northern California wildfires sent a thick, sometimes orange-glowing haze over the area Wednesday that left the Bay Area in an eerie darkness all day. The sun was blocked by the smoke.

“The lights were on when I first got here. It’s like we’re in a dome. It has been dark out there all day. I don’t have any sunglasses to go out there with today," Athletics manager Bob Melvin said, later adding, "I have a white hat on today, see what color it is when I come in afterward. Little experiment on my behalf today.”

Still, the air quality was below 100 about two hours before first pitch. The A's played games last month with the air quality index up to 150-160, what is considered the upper end of unhealthy, and games aren't typically considered for cancellation until it reaches the 200 range, according to Melvin.

It made for a strange baseball scene to say the least. AL West-leading Oakland was set to face the Houston Astros, while across San Francisco Bay the Giants were hosting the Seattle Mariners.

The sky around Oracle Park matched the Giants' black and orange colors, while the smell of smoke permeated the air leading up to first pitch with chunks of ash falling.

“Certainly a strange look when we all woke up this morning and found kind of the orangeish-red hue to the sky,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said. “Walking onto the field today was certainly different, in the middle of the afternoon and having the sky look a little bit dark. But my understanding is that the air quality is OK....

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Smoke-from-nearby-wildfires-creates-eerie-15555523.php