They already know at Bronx Banter, but tonight's Orioles-Yankees game at Camden Yards was suspended in the top of the 8th inning with the Yankees ahead 8-6.

The Yankees trailed 6-4 going to the 8th, but scored four runs against Orioles relievers John Parrish and Chris Ray. Derek Jeter was on second with two outs.

The game was suspended because of Rule 4.12 (a) (5):

A game shall become a suspended game that must be completed at a future date if the game is terminated for any of the following reasons:

....

Weather, if a regulation game is called while an inning is in progress and before the inning is completed, and the visiting team has scored one or more runs to take the lead, and the home team has not retaken the lead;

There have been two other suspended games this year.

April 10 between the Brewers and Marlins.

May 1 between the Pirates and Cubs.

The rules state that a suspended game will be completed before the next scheduled game between the two teams on the same grounds. That would be July 27, when the Yankees make their next trip to Baltimore.

Joe Torre seems to not know the rule as Tyler Kepner of the New York Times reports:

The game will be resumed from the point it was stopped before the teams’ next game here on July 27. If not for a rule change this season, Torre said, the Orioles would have won because they led at the end of the last full inning.

Actually the rule above has been on the book since 1979 (just when in 1979 is unclear because the players didn't agree to it at first, but it was put in the rule book in 1979), the rule change this year was to allow tied games stopped by rain that had gone five innings to be suspended.

Even if Jeter hadn't been allowed to bat and drive in two runs, the game would have been suspended.

Also the Washington Post screwed up the rule interpretation.

I've got a 1992 edition of the baseball rule book and the rule about a game being suspended mid-inning because the visitors took the lead has been around for a while. Note this game between the Dodgers and Giants on April 12, 2000. The game was tied 2-2 going to the top of the 6th when the Dodgers scored a run. Then rain fell and stopped play in San Francisco. That game was suspended and completed the next day with the Dodgers eventually winning 6-5.

I'll shut up now.