tinder

Neither side is sitting still—and the steps they are taking to shore up their longer-term resilience will likely provide tinder for flare-ups.

But a week later, powerful Santa Ana winds arrived, and coupled with single-digit humidity, they turned the landscape into bone-dry tinder ready to burn.

“The tinder was there for something like Friday to occur,” said Mike Thompson, co-portfolio manager at Little Harbor Advisors.

Knowing there is already a wealth of tinder, the skippers will not want sparks to fly - certainly until the contest finally gets under way on Friday morning.

This year, more tinder has been added to the fire, thanks to a flurry of hit batters and a benches-clearing melee during a series at Dodger Stadium in June.