The big red blob

9:21 P.M., Monday, Wrigley Field

While there was a game here tonight, baseball wasn't the story.

Just after the sixth inning, a massive storm hit Chicago, bringing a down pour of rain and winds up to 44 mph. When rain is coming down sideways, there's a little trouble on its way.

I looked out the windows to see fans scurrying for cover. The only thing standing that wasn't buckling was the Ernie Banks statue. Trust Mr. Cub to be our rock amid a storm...

Most of the fans were huddled inside Wrigley Field's concourse, One person had the best line of the night: "It smells like Lollapalooza."

Others sat perched up underneath the mezzanine and the standing-room-only area. It drizzled just a little bit, but the ballpark's massive haunches held out most of the weather. In the distance, lightning shot down and thunder rolled hard.

I was talking to one out-of-town fan when he said: "Hey, isn't that your governor?"

Sure enough, Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich was strolling along shaking hands and seeing how people were doing.

I said: "Governor, is Wrigley Field our refuge of last resort?" I was joking, quickly realizing too late the non-political correctness of the question.

"Wow, it's that bad, huh?" The tornado siren just past centerfield had gone off twice during the first hour of the rain delay

"It's worse in the South Loop around Soldier Field and US Cellular," I said, referring to the big green and red blob hovering over Chicago I saw on weather.com.

"Well," the Governor said, "We'll just have to wait it out and hope we get the game in."

I had the unfortunate look on my face thinking "that's never going to happen."

But after nearly two hours, he was right--all signs pointed to the teams getting this one in. The tarp came off at about 9:30, with all groundkeeping personnel involved determined to finish the game. Those guys work hard.

--Mike Huang