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World Series Game 1 at Dodger Stadium could be the hottest ever played

Liz Roscher
·Staff writer

For various parts of the country, the World Series (and the playoffs in general) means the arrival of autumn weather. Red and orange leaves, comfy sweaters and wondering how much longer you can get away with leaving the house in the morning without a coat. But that’s not true everywhere, of course. There won’t be any traditional “fall weather” in the World Series at all this year. With the Series being played between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Houston Astros, the games will be split between two distinctly un-autumn destinations: Los Angeles and Houston.

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And when the Series kicks off on Tuesday, the weather will be as un-autumn as it gets. In fact, it’ll feel like the middle of summer.

When the first pitch is thrown at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday, it could be 100 degrees, making it the hottest ever played. The record for hottest game was set 16 years ago, back in 2001, for a game played indoors at Chase Field (then known as Bank One Ballpark) in Phoenix. If the forecast holds, Tuesday’s Game 1 will beat it by six degrees. MLB’s official historian John Thorne had a little more information about very hot World Series games:

This weather isn’t normal for Los Angeles. On average, temperatures in late October are in the mid 60s. This year, the spike is due to the Santa Ana winds, which pushes in dry air from the deserts that warms up as it comes in. The Santa Ana winds can also be incredibly dangerous — the dry air lowers humidity and dries out plants and trees, making them more vulnerable to fires, which can burn out of control due to the wind.

It’s going to be mighty hot when the Dodgers and Astros take the field at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday. (AP Photo)
It’s going to be mighty hot when the Dodgers and Astros take the field at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday. (AP Photo)

This World Series could be the hottest for other reasons, too. It’s the first time that two 100-win teams have met in the World Series since 1970. Both teams are crammed full of talent, and we’ll get to see that on full display. The possible AL MVP (Jose Altuve) is on one team, and the likely NL Rookie of the Year (Cody Bellinger) is on the other. There’s outstanding pitching, great defense and potent offense. This is what the World Series is all about.

What it shouldn’t be about is collapsing from heat exhaustion. So if you’re going to the game, don’t forget to wear sunscreen and drink lots of water. (And that goes for the players, too.)

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Liz Roscher is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at lizroscher@yahoo.com or follow her on twitter! Follow @lizroscher

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