Rain, rain go away! Middlesex and Midland Park will try again Monday. So how does this work?

Despite everyone’s best efforts, the Middlesex and Midland Park baseball teams just couldn’t get in their Group 1 state title game down at Veterans’ Park in Hamilton Saturday afternoon, due to light rain that turned heavy in the top of the first inning, leaving poor field conditions.

The game was called in the middle of the first with no score, and will be resumed Monday at 1 pm with the Blue Jays coming up to bat in the bottom of the first. You can listen live on Central Jersey Sports Radio by clicking here.

What actually happened?

All four public finals were slated for Saturday, with Group 4 at 10 am, followed by Group 1 at 1 pm, then Groups 2 and 3 at 4 and 7 pm, respectively. Heading into the day, it looked like the best chance for rain would be between noon and 4 pm.

The 10:00 game got off without a hitch between Cherokee and Westfield. It started raining lightly around 11:30, around the sixth innings, but the Chiefs already had a lead then. They finished as it continued to rain, and Cherokee won the state Group 4 title with a 6-0 victory. Kudos to the NJSIAA for giving that game a shot; had it gone much longer they might not have finished, but they did, and the rain at the end didn’t appear to play much of a factor at all.

Middlesex and Midland Park had already arrived, and some fans for that game had started showing up, as well. Discussions took place, and it appeared both coaches wanted to try and play. They were here already, weren’t they? So why not?

It seemed like there were three options: 1) play at 1 pm and see how much they could get in (maybe the rain would miss?), 2) wait until after the rain was supposed to end around 4 pm (the state appeared already to have postponed the last two games to Monday, so there would be plenty of time before the late-night curfew), or 3) simply postpone until Monday.

Middlesex schools are closed Monday for observance of Juneteenth, while Midland Park had final exams scheduled.

Ultimately, around 12:45, with the input of the head coaches and athletic directors from both schools, NJSIAA baseball tournament director and Chief Operating Office Tony Maselli decided to let the teams try and get this one in Saturday.

They got through four batters and one half inning.

Had the rain not picked up and become more heavy (how often are forecasts wrong, right?) it would have again looked like a brilliant move, and met the desires of both teams to jut get things going already. Well, it didn’t. Then again, they could have postponed until Monday, an the rest of Saturday could have been fine; it’s a crap shoot.

They could have also started early, but that could have limited the availability of the starting pitchers had there been a chance to come back Sunday. (Read on for more about that.)

What happens now?

State tournament games in baseball are played under the suspended game rule. You can read it in its entirety here, in the 2025 Baseball Game Ending Rules. It states the following:

“If a game is called before it becomes a completed game because of weather, field conditions, or darkness, the umpire shall declare the contest a “suspended game”. There are no official games when the contest is played under the suspended game rule. The game must be played to completion. This must be discussed before the first pitch. A game that is suspended at any time shall be picked up at the point of interruption the next day.”

That means the score will be 0-0.

Midland Park in the top of the first had Ryan Fleming lead off with a ground out to second, Chase Shortway launched a rocket to right field caught shy of the warning track on the run by Dylan Ianiero, Braiden Rusell hit a two-out single past a diving Owen Reynolds at first, but then Connor Shortway grounded to Dom Parenti at short to end the inning.

The Panthers’ defense got called off the field before starter Connor Detrick could even face a batter. So that’s where we’ll resume at 1:00 Monday, with Parenti leading off the bottom of the first.

All lineups will be the same, and any changes coaches want to be made would have to be made as part of the game, since lineup cards were exchanged and the game did, in fact, start. Then again, high school baseball rules allow players to re-enter, so that shouldn’t affect much either. And since onyl one-half inning was played, expect no changes.

What about the pitchers?

That would have been a concern had the game progressed further. Under the suspended game rule, the one day of rest required for a pitcher who throws more than 30 pitches is waived, but the limit is extended to 50. However, Middlesex starter Domenic Long only threw 15, and Detrick didn’t even throw one. So, essentially, no one will have any less than the customary 110-pitch daily limit when they come back on Monday.

Does anyone gain an advantage here?

Probably not. Sure, everyone was hyped up to play this game, especially Midland Park, a first time sectional champion this season. But ultimately, everyone has to come back two days later, there are no games in between, and everyone has all the pitchers available. There’s no downside to playing Monday.

But neither teem has gone deep pitching-wise in the states.

In five games, Midland Park has only used two starting pitchers, with the previous starter sometimes coming out of the bullpen. Middlesex has only started long and Chris Kozak, with uber-pinch hitter Dalton Michael the only other arm to make an appearance, throwing two innings in the first round of a 10-0 five-inning win over Keyport.

You’ve heard of icing the kicker? Well, everyone’s iced the same amount here. All pitchers can throw with their full limit available. This is a push. The only benefit? It should be drier.

So what about that forecast?

As of 4 pm here on Saturday, The Weather Channel forecast for Monday is cloudy – with about 90 percent cloud cover – and a high of 69 degrees, with ENE winds (in from left field) at 5-10 miles per hour.

While humidity will be about 83 percent, the daytime chance of precipitation is about 15 percent. That’s a good day to take your shot.

What about the other games?

Saturday’s two later games also were moved, but will keep the same order. West Morris will play undefeated Governor Livingston – the state’s No. 1 team – in the Group 2 final at 4 pm, followed by the Group 3 final at 7:00 featuring Morris Knolls and Northern Burlington.