Navy: 'Houston, You Have Two Problems'

UPDATED BELOW One problem facing Houston is Hurricane Ike, predicted to become a Category 3 or 4 storm by landfall near coastal Houston.

Authorities in the Houston area and along the Southeast Texas Gulf Coast ordered hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate Thursday as Hurricane Ike lumbered toward the coast and threatened to grow even stronger.
* * *
"It's a big storm. I cannot overemphasize the danger that is facing us," Gov. Rick Perry said at a news conference. "It's going to do some substantial damage. It's going to knock out power. It's going to cause massive flooding."

The other problem is an idiot named Drayton McLane. He's one of the 400 richest men in America and happens to be the owner of the Houston Astros baseball team. McLane apparently is insisting that the Chicago Cubs fly into Houston late tonight -- while everyone with any sense is leaving the city -- in order to play tomorrow night's scheduled game in the Minute Maid Dome, or whatever corporate name that monstrosity may be advertising this week.

Chicago Tribune sports writer Phil Rogers has it right:

Huh? Isn't this just a little absurd?

While the lateness of the season dictates this series has to be played, there's no way it should remain in Houston, no matter how loudly McLane argues that his team deserves home-field advantage as it tries to stay alive in the wild-card race.

There are 15 major-league parks that will sit empty this weekend, including Wrigley Field.

The series should be moved to a neutral site—say, Busch Stadium in St. Louis or Turner Field in Atlanta—if McLane and Selig aren't agreeable to the Cubs getting three extra home games in the middle of the playoff race.

As Rogers also points out -- no surprise, here -- for McLane it's all about money. Saving human lives doesn't impress him:

The Astros expect three sellouts, bringing in revenue to help underwrite their $90 million payroll, and will be forced to refund money if the games aren't played.

"Greed trumps safety," as Cubbie fan Bob Warja says. If MLB commissioner Bud Selig doesn't, at long last, stand up to this imperious baseball club owner and order a storm-safe solution, he ought to be stripped naked and tethered to the center field flagpole in Houston for the entire three game series.

UPDATE
9-11 pm

Bleeding Cubbie Blue authoritatively reports that Friday's game in Houston was postponed late today.