​MLB smoke updates: Latest updates on Phillies-Mets, other games impacted by Canadian wildfires originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.Three years after smoke from Canadian wildfires postponed three MLB games, many Americans are again dealing with reduced air quality and visibility.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementMLB received perfect weather for its All-Star festivities in Philadelphia, avoiding rain, smoke, and even this week’s most extreme temperatures, but the start of the second half of the season on Thursday night could be at risk as smoke creeps further south.As MLB returns in full force on Friday, other games could potentially be at risk.Here are the latest updates on which games are impacted by Canadian wildfire smoke.MORE:Where Jordan Walker ranks among youngest HR Derby winnersMLB returns with just one game on Thursday night as the Phillies host the Mets, but 15 games are set to be played on Friday, with the Phillies and Mets off but the Red Sox hosting a doubleheader against the Rays.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe good news for MLB is that there is only one game on the schedule to be affected by wildfire smoke on Thursday. The bad news, however, is that the game is likely to be impacted in some form.As of Thursday morning, the air quality index (AQI) in Philadelphia is 185, according to AirNow. That’s in the Environmental Protection Agency’s “unhealthy” range, not far from the “very unhealthy” range that starts at 201.2023’s wildfires give an indication of whether the game might be played, as the Yankees and White Sox played a hazy game with an AQI in the low 200s while the Nationals and Diamondbacks played a game with an AQI in the 180 range before their game the following day was postponed with the AQI hovering near 270.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAccording to AccuWeather, Philadelphia’s AQI is forecasted to be 162 at the 7:05 p.m. ET first pitch between the Mets and Phillies and could rise to 200 by the end of the night.MLB doesn’t have a set AQI standard that automatically postpones a game, but it’s reasonable to think the game could be played in those hazy conditions unless the league breaks its precedent from 2023.It’s still difficult to forecast the smoke for Friday, but heavy smoke is expected to dip into the mid-Atlantic. That’s not the worst news for MLB, as the Nationals and Orioles are both on the road while the Phillies are off.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThe Yankees, however, could see their game against the Dodgers impacted, while games at Progressive Field in Cleveland and Wrigley Field and Chicago could also be affected depending on which way the wind takes the smoke. The Blue Jays play at home on Friday night against the White Sox but have the option to close their roof.With smoke expected to move well south of Boston by Friday, the Red Sox’s doubleheader against the Rays is less likely to be affected but will stil