What Does PPD Mean In Baseball? (Answered!)
Paul Hall
For many fans, baseball games are a part of their regular daily routine.
For the duration of the season, many of them build their schedules around the games of their team.
The daily dose of games during the season often brings some much-needed excitement into our everyday lives and provides a chance to relax after a long day at work.
So, there’s hardly anything worse for a baseball game than preparing for the match and getting a pre-game mood, only to find out that there’s no game on.
Usually, you’ll just see a small notification next to the game ins schedule, simply saying that the game is PPD.
More casual fans are often not even sure what this means and why there’s no game on.
Below, I’ll explain what does PPD mean in baseball and what are the reasons for this abbreviation to appear.
So, let’s dive in!
Table of Contents
What Does PPD Mean In Baseball?
The meaning behind the PPD abbreviation is pretty straightforward. It simply means that the game has been postponed.
When you see these three letters, it’s an indication that the game will not be played at a scheduled time, but moved to a future time and date.
The exact time when the game will be played is sometimes known at the moment of postponement and sometimes not.
If a game is postponed, it’s very likely that it will be played eventually as they get canceled only on extremely rare occasions.
The game can be postponed before it starts, or it can be suspended during the play for various reasons.
Various factors can lead to game postponement, but more on that below.
Why Are Baseball Games Postponed?
As I said, baseball games get postponed for different reasons, but most frequently due to the bad weather.
Still, there are other events that can lead to a game not being played at a scheduled time.
Weather Conditions
The most common reason for the game postponement is the rainout. Even though they don’t happen as much as they used to, rainouts still occur from time to time.
Obviously, due to the nature of the sport, ball games can’t be played during heavy rain. More importantly, playing while the rain pours can present a serious risk for everyone involved.
It’s worth noting that the game will typically be played if the rain is only light to moderate.
If it’s raining before the start of the game, the decision on the postponement lies with the home team manager.
However, once the manager hands the lineup card to the umpire, the responsibility for the potential postponement moves to the umpiring team crew chief.
The exception is the postseason when the MLB Commissioner’s office is the only one that can decide to postpone the game.
Other Reasons For Baseball Game Postponement
Besides inclement weather, there are other unforeseen circumstances that can cause the ball game postponement.
A game can be postponed due to a law-imposed curfew, a significant national event, or if a serious health risk occurs.
Some of the most notable examples from MLB history are game postponements during the Normandy invasion in 1944 and the 9/11 terrorist attack in 2001.
Recently, we’ve seen a significant increase in the number of postponed games due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
After the shortened 2020 season, the next season went on as planned. However, we saw many postponements due to the safety precautions.
Of course, this was done with the health of players and everyone else at games in mind.
What Happens If An MLB Game Is Postponed?
What happens when a game is postponed mainly depends on the moment of postponement.
The timing, or whether a game was postponed before the gates opened, right before the game, or during the play, plays the role in what happens next.
Postponement Before The Game Starts
When a game is postponed due to the rain or any other reason before the event starts, the rules are pretty simple and straightforward.
In this case, the game is delayed for a later day and time. Commonly, teams will attempt to squeeze the game in the very next day as a part of a doubleheader.
Postponement During The Game
When the decision the postponement is made during a game, things are a bit more complicated. Several different scenarios can come into play.
If a game is called off at the top of the fifth inning with the home team in the lead, it will be deemed as complete and the current result becomes official.
In case the home team is trailing at that point, then the bottom of the fifth must also be played for a game to be official and the winner declared.
If the visiting team is in the lead at the top of the fifth inning or a game is tied after the bottom of the fifth, then the game is suspended and will be continued at a different time.
In case the two teams continue the game before the next regularly scheduled matchup, the length of the continued game will only be 7 innings.
What Happens To Tickets When A Baseball Game Is Postponed?
The status of purchased tickets for a postponed game also depends on when a game was postponed and when it is rescheduled.
Commonly, in case of postponement due to the rain or other reasons, you get to keep your ticket and use it for the rescheduled game.
If the game is not played before the season ends, you’ll be reimbursed for the value of the ticket.
Sometimes, the postponement happens before the game even starts and it’s postponed indefinitely.
Here, you can use the ticket and swap it for any other match in the same season, except for special events, such as playoff games.
Conclusion
Nobody likes game postponements. Seeing a PPD sign next to the game you’ve been planning to watch can ruin your entire day.
However, the health and safety of everyone on the field, as well as the fairness of the game, are the top priorities.
MLB mostly tries to have every game be on schedule, whenever it’s possible. However, some situations can simply create unplayable circumstances.
Weather plays the biggest role in this, but other factors can also cause postponements, and there’s nothing we can do about it.
Fortunately, there are 162 games in the season for every team, so even if we can’t watch the game on a particular day, there’s still plenty of baseball played to satisfy our hunger for the sport.
