1.   And every rain delay is followed by yet another knock-up, until everyone is pretty much knock-kneed and knocked out and pregnant with expectation.

2.   And because of rain delays, the harvest season, which usually ends in March, will stretch into April.

3.   And in this most statistical of all sports, there are even statistics for longest rain delays.

4.   Another was cut short after five innings because of a rain delay.

5.   Because he neglected to use a strategy he employed in the minors on nights when long rain delays were expected.

6.   Because of a rain delay, they did not complete their rounds on Saturday and finished them early Sunday morning.

7.   Blame it on the rain delay or, more specifically, shots in the dark.

8.   Both starting pitchers needed an inning to work out the kinks after the rain delay, and the batters took full advantage of the situation.

9.   A rain delay in Charlotte, at least at the start, was going to make it a little easier.

10.   A rain delay then held up play for several minutes.