Boston sports and the fog: A brief history

With the fog providing a surreal backdrop, it was a "crazy" night Sunday in Foxborough. But it wasn’t the first time fog had an impact on a Boston sports team.


1) A May 27, 1986 game in Cleveland between the Red Sox and Indians was delayed when a dense patch of fog rolled in off Lake Erie, blanketing Municipal Stadium. The game was actually delayed twice — once for eight minutes, and a second time for an hour and 35 minutes. During one of the delays, Indians’ coach Bobby Bonds was called out of the Cleveland dugout with a fungo to hit some balls to the outfielders to see what would happen. According to reports, Boston outfielder Dwight Evans caught the first one, but couldn’t locate the second. That was enough for the umpires, who called the game in the bottom of the sixth with the Red Sox holding a 2-0 lead. Afterward, the always quotable Dennis “Oil Can” Boyd shrugged when reporters asked him for his thoughts. “Hey, when you build a building on the ocean, what do you expect? You expect fog. They should blame themselves for building it on the ocean.”

2) Fog also played a role in Game Four of the 1988 Stanley Cup Finals at the old Boston Garden. It was a hot day in late May, and when you factor in the lack of air conditioning in the old barn, it made for a dicey situation. The Oilers, who were holding a 3-0 series lead at the time, took an early lead on the Bruins, but the chill of the ice mixed with the heat of Boston made it tough to continue. According to this Los Angeles Times story, the start of the game “was played in a fog that resulted from a temperature of more than 80 degrees in the building. The game was delayed several times as the players skated in circles in an attempt to clear the fog, which was particularly heavy in the corners.” Turns out, that wasn’t the worst of their problems — a power failure later in the evening ultimately caused the game to be suspended. Game Four was ultimately picked up again in Edmonton, where the Oilers finished their sweep of the Bruins.



3) On Jan. 13, 1997, fog played a role in the first home playoff game in 18 years for the Patriots, this one against the Steelers. A dreary afternoon of mist and occasional cold created a blanket of fog over much of the area, but it didn’t impact New England, which crushed the Steelers, 28-3. Curtis Martin ran for a team playoff-record 166 yards on 19 carries and had three rushing touchdowns. The most memorable play of the afternoon, however, came when Drew Bledsoe found Terry Glenn on a deep ball in the early going, setting the stage for the rout. The Patriots advanced to the AFC title game the following week against the Jags.