Rochester weather in March is never something you can accurately predict, unless your prediction is that just about everything is on the table.
For the Rochester Red Wings, it wasn’t snow, and it wasn’t bitter cold that wiped out Tuesday’s home opener at ESL Ballpark against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. It was the same thing that would have postponed a game in the middle of the summer — rain. Lots of rain.
The teams — who have both started the 2026 International League season with 2-1 records — will now play Rochester’s initial home game Wednesday at 4:05 and Tuesday’s rainout will be made up as part of a doubleheader Friday starting at 1:05.
There was really never a doubt that Tuesday’s game would be postponed. After a morning where heavy rain fell in the region for several hours, there was a period of calm in the early afternoon and the temperature got into the mid-60s which is quite odd for March.
That was merely a tease because even as the ballpark gates were opening at 2:30, the radar showed that things were going to get ugly again at around 3:30 p.m. and that’s what happened.
With the calendar now flipping to April, it means the 2023 home opener remains the only home game in Red Wings history to be played in the month of March.
Sal Maiorana has covered the Buffalo Bills for more than four decades including 37 years as the full-time beat writer/columnist for the D&C. He has written numerous books about the history of the team, and he is also co-host of the BLEAV in Bills podcast/YouTube show. He can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com, and you can follow him on X @salmaiorana and on Bluesky @salmaiorana.bsky.social.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rain washes out Red Wings home opener in Rochester
Reporting by Sal Maiorana, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle / Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
