The Red Sox were supposed to open their three-game weekend series with the New York Mets on Friday at 7:15 p.m.<\/p>\n
Thanks to numerous flight delays, the team didn\u2019t arrive at Citi Field until close to two hours before the originally scheduled first pitch.<\/p>\n
As a result, Friday\u2019s series opener started at 7:50 p.m. instead, 35 minutes later than planned.<\/p>\n
A Red Sox source confirmed at 3:30 p.m. that the team plane was finally airborne after nearly a day\u2019s worth of delays leaving Chicago. The team was originally scheduled to fly from Chicago to New York on Thursday night following the club\u2019s series finale against the White Sox, but according to multiple reports<\/a> the club\u2019s flight was grounded due to plane issues, which stranded the Red Sox in Chicago into Friday afternoon.<\/p>\n \u201cWe tried to make light of the situation,\u201d Red Sox lefty Payton Tolle told reporters in New York, including MLB.com\u2019s Ian Browne<\/a>. \u201cWe tried to have fun with it. At one point, we just kind of looked at each other and started laughing because it was just ridiculous.\u201d<\/p>\n Typically, MLB teams arrive at the ballpark roughly five hours before first pitch for pregame meetings and activities. The Red Sox finally arrived at Citi Field at approximately 5:05 p.m., and after MLB consulted with both clubs the decision was made to push back first pitch. The announcement was made at around 6 p.m.<\/p>\n That didn\u2019t give the Red Sox much time to get ready, but after a marathon travel experience the players were grateful to finally be back on the field.<\/p>\n