The first day of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) Baseball Tournament at Crushers Stadium in Avon, Ohio, was filled with rain, rain and more rain.
In the end, there was only one game played on Wednesday near the shores of Lake Erie, with Ball State defeating Eastern Michigan 6-5.
Here are my Falcon Four takeaways of the first day of action in Avon:
Rain is going to be a major problem this week
Rain has already proved to be a major obstacle for the MAC and the six teams competing in the tournament.
There was a three-hour rain delay in the middle of the Ball State and Eastern Michigan game before the weather postponed the Bowling Green and Toledo matchup to Thursday morning.
However, there are no signs of the rain slowing down in Avon.
According to The Weather Channel, there is at least a 50% chance of rain every hour until 2 p.m. on Thursday and at least a 40% chance of rain every hour until 6 p.m. That is a major problem for the MAC, as they are aiming to play four games on Thursday.
There is also a 37% chance of rain on Friday, which is also concerning.
As we learned during the first day of action at Crushers Stadium, turf helps a lot with absorbing and draining rain compared to natural grass. However, we also saw that there is a limit.
My guess is we may see multiple games on Sunday due to even more postponements.
Weather may hurt Bowling Green and Toledo
Keeping with the weather trend, the fallout from the first day of the tournament has a chance to come back and haunt the Falcons or Rockets.
The two rivals will face off in the first game on Thursday at 9 a.m. if the weather permits.
However, the loser of that game will play the very next game against Eastern Michigan with their backs up against the wall, as a loss will mean elimination.
Either way, both teams are guaranteed to play two contests on Thursday, which is a tough draw due to the rain on Wednesday.
Eastern Michigan proved why they are a tournament team
In my opinion, Eastern Michigan came into this tournament with the least to lose and the lowest expectations.
The tournament appearance is their first since 2018, and they are the only team in Avon with a losing record. Simply put, not many people expect the Eagles to make many waves or pull off upsets.
However, even though they lost 6-5 to Ball State on Wednesday, they proved that they deserve to be at Crushers Stadium.
The Eagles scored five in the fourth inning and led the Cardinals 5-3 going into the bottom of the inning with all the momentum, and then the rain poured down for three hours, halting their momentum. The outcome of that game could be a lot different if the weather was better; however, EMU still pushed Ball State to their limits and proved they will be a tough elimination this year.
Ball State will be a scary matchup
On Wednesday, Ball State survived the early tournament scare, defeating Eastern Michigan, the lowest seed.
Some people will read into the final score, which was decided by just one run.
However, the Cardinals are in a tremendous position for the rest of the tournament.
BSU started Brendan Garza against the Eagles, who had only started four games this season. They also only had to throw two arms the entire game, with John Chambers delivering 5.2 scoreless frames out of the bullpen.
That is a tremendous position for Ball State to be in. The Cardinals still have both of their aces, who are two of the best pitchers in the MAC, along with a nearly fully rested bullpen.
Ball State will be ready for battle and is primed to be a very scary matchup for any team for the rest of this tournament.
