The looming nor’easter heading for Boston is certainly going to impact the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs‘ three-game series to end the MLB regular season.
Both teams are going to the playoffs, but seeding could still be on the line when they meet in interleague action, and the weather forecast has the league considering all the options.
The current working setup would involve playing a doubleheader on Friday and the final game of their season on Saturday at Fenway Park in Boston before getting out of dodge.
It sounds like that isn’t finalized, though.
In fact, they may end the season playing in a different ballpark all together.
Red Sox-Cubs in Tampa Bay?
ESPN’s Jesse Rogers reported on Thursday that the Red Sox and Cubs could end up playing games in Tampa to close out the season.
This is what Rogers posted on X:
Lots of scenarios still in play for Cubs/Red Sox this weekend. Could even get Game 1 in on Friday then have to move (Tampa?) Game 2 that night and Game 3 but go back to playing them Sat and Sun. Right now, playing 2 on Friday and 1 on Sat. in Boston but some of that’s in doubt!
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) September 24, 2026
If that theory played out, it seems that there’d be no more Friday doubleheader, and that they’d instead get to finish out the season on the same calendar as the other teams in the league.
MLB starts the final day of the regular season at the same time for everyone to take into account the potential for playoff implications, and putting the Red Sox and Cubs in Tampa would allow them to fit that plan.
Still, it sounds like the wheels are still spinning. The ever-shifting weather forecast will force MLB to make a call, and they’ll just have to hope they’re right.
How This Impacts Rays
The reason this would be possible could be that the Tampa Bay Rays aren’t home this weekend — although the report doesn’t specifically state that it’d be at their ballpark.
The Rays are already on the road, playing in New York against the Yankees to close out a series on Thursday night.
The Rays then head to Philadelphia for a three-game series against the Phillies to finish the regular season.
While none of the reporting on this has said it specifically, one option is for the Red Sox and Cubs to play at the Rays’ Tropicana Field, which is technically located in St. Petersburg. There is an alternative in Tampa, though. That’s the Yankees’ Spring Training home, Steinbrenner Field.
According to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo, it would specifically be a move to Tropicana Field if it happened.
This is a fluid situation, so it’ll be worth staying tuned to see what happens here.
Boston Weather for Red Sox-Cubs Could Send Series to Tampa