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Fog Halts Play and Knocks Out Replay Tech as Cardinals Shut Out Cubs at Wrigley

A sudden blanket of fog from Lake Michigan forced a midgame stoppage and temporarily disabled MLB’s ABS and Gameday systems, underlining how weather can blind camera- and sensor-based tracking.

Overview

  • The game started late after a roughly 59-minute rain delay and then was stopped for about 15 minutes after the sixth inning when thick fog made the baseball impossible to see.
  • Players and managers told umpires they could not track fly balls, and the crew suspended play until visibility improved so the teams could safely resume.
  • Umpires announced the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) challenge system was not operational and MLB’s Gameday pitch-tracking could not report pitch velocities briefly during the fog, affecting replay and data functions.
  • Once play resumed the St. Louis Cardinals completed a 3-0 win, highlighted by JJ Wetherholt’s leadoff home run and RBI hits from Iván Herrera and Alex Burleson.
  • Fans in the sellout crowd turned the delay into a celebration with singing and a long beer snake, and the incident — echoing past Wrigley fog problems — may prompt scrutiny of how camera-dependent systems perform in extreme weather.