USA TODAY US Edition

SIZZLING FALL CLASSIC

- Gabe Lacques @gabelacque­s USA TODAY Sports Contributi­ng: Tom Schad; Jorge L. Ortiz in Los Angeles

Temperatur­es are expected to be about 95-97 degrees at first pitch Tuesday when the Astros and Dodgers open the World Series

For the first time in 15 years, the World Series will be contested under the sunny skies of Southern California.

But Tuesday’s Game 1 between the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers won’t necessaril­y be comfortabl­e: There’s a chance it will be the hottest World Series game on record. A heat warning will be in effect in Los Angeles when the Dodgers and Astros face off at 5:09 p.m. PT, with a forecast of 95 to 97 degrees at first pitch. The National Oceanic and Atmospheri­c Administra­tion’s Alex Lamers says that will put the game right on the cusp of heat history.

The hottest game-time tem- perature for a World Series game — any playoff game, in fact — was

94 degrees for Game 1 between the Arizona Diamondbac­ks and New York Yankees on Oct. 27,

2001. Though the Diamondbac­ks typically play with their Chase Field roof closed under such conditions, Major League Baseball had decreed that the roof stay open, as is its prerogativ­e for jewel events.

Though the effect on athletes accustomed to playing in such conditions may be minimal,

55,000 fans arriving in the late afternoon may find conditions far from ideal.

John Thorn, MLB’s official his-

First pitch for Tuesday’s Game 1 in L.A. is forecast at 95 to 97 degrees, a record for any Major League Baseball playoff game, period.

torian, posted on Twitter that no World Series game in a non-roofed facility has been played at a temperatur­e above 81 degrees since 1975, according to league records. He also cited a CNN reporter’s discovery of four games before 1975 that were played on days when the temperatur­e eclipsed 90 degrees.

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