Derek Jeter’s final home game could be ruined by rain

As an anxious world watches, Derek Jeter is scheduled to play the final home game of his career Thursday night in Yankee Stadium. Only there’s one problem: It’s raining in New York.

There’s a 70% chance of rain throughout the evening in the area, calling into question whether the Yankees’ game against the Orioles will be played. If there’s a rainout, expect plenty of irate Yankee fans, some of whom paid upward of $1,000 on the after-market for a ticket to see Jeter’s farewell.

If the game is rained out, it is unlikely to be made up because this is the season’s final week, and the game is virtually meaningless. The Yankees, who finish the regular season at Boston, are out of the playoffs, and the Orioles have already clinched a spot.

If the Angels lose their remaining games and the Orioles sweep the Toronto Blue Jays this weekend, the Angels would have a 98-64 record and Baltimore would be 98-63. In that unlikely scenario, Thursday’s rained-out Orioles-Yankees game could be made up on Monday to see which two teams, the Angels or Orioles, would finish with the better record. If after that game the Orioles and Angels had the same record, the Orioles would win home-field advantage because they have won four of six meetings with the Angels this season.

But who cares about the playoffs? This is Derek Jeter we are talking about. Yes, the angels in heaven are crying, sending their tears disguised as rain onto the field at Yankee Stadium, but America can’t be deprived of saying farewell to Jeter at Yankee Stadium one last time, can it?

Expect the umpires and the league to do everything in their power to get tonight’s game in. It will take a monsoon of epic proportions to rain out this game.