More than four hours before the scheduled 6:45 p.m. first pitch, the Red Sox and Orioles postponed Thursday’s series opener due to what the former described as “significant rainfall expected to continue through the evening in the Fenway area.”

The American League East rivals will instead play a split doubleheader on Friday, with tickets from Thursday’s game honored for Game 1 at 1:35 p.m.

Friday’s original game remains scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

Boston and Baltimore will meet again on Saturday at 4:10 p.m., followed by a series finale at 1:35 p.m. Sunday to wrap up the 10-game homestand.

This is Fenway’s second rainout this season and the Red Sox’s third overall (Cleveland).

The National Weather Service listed “Hazardous Weather Conditions” on Thursday, including a wind advisory in effect from 2-11 p.m. and a coastal flood advisory from 6-11 p.m. Temperatures have also dropped precipitously throughout the week; the local temperature was 49 degrees at the time of the club’s announcement, but the wind chill was 36 degrees.

Right-hander Lucas Giolito was scheduled to pitch Thursday, followed by Brayan Bello, Hunter Dobbins, and Walker Buehler in the subsequent three games of the series. Instead, Bello will start Game 1 on Friday, followed by Giolito in Game 2.

Hendriks receives death threats

It’s not uncommon for professional athletes to receive criticism on social media, but sometimes that fan behavior can escalate into harassment or outright abuse.

On Thursday, Red Sox right-hander Liam Hendriks revealed he’d received messages that were beyond the pale.

“Just as an FYI: Threats against my life and my wife’s life are horrible and cruel. You need help.” Hendriks wrote on a post on Instagram. “Leaving comments telling me to commit suicide and how you wish I died from cancer is disgusting and vile.”

“Maybe you should take a step back and reevaluate your life’s purpose before hiding behind a screen attacking players and their families. Whether you do it from your ‘fake accounts’ or are dumb enough to do it from your real account,” Hendriks continued. “I think I speak for all players who have had to deal with this in their career when I say: Enough is enough.”

Hendriks’ post came a day after the veteran right-hander was charged with three runs over 0.2 innings before taking the loss in Wednesday’s 5-1 loss to the New York Mets. Hendriks also made comments to the media critical of his recent usage, telling Alex Speier of The Boston Globe that “the more I pitch, the better I get” and that he’s had multiple conversations with the club about his current role, which lately has consisted mostly of infrequent low-leverage situations.

A three-time All-Star, Hendriks has overcome significant health challenges in recent years. He was diagnosed with Stage 4 non-Hodgkins lymphoma in December 2022, and shortly after returning to the mound he suffered an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery, which kept him out of action for nearly two years.

Since his return Hendriks has posted a 5.56 ERA in 11.1 innings through his first 11 appearances.

Hendriks is not the first Red Sox player known to have received death threats this season. Earlier this year outfielder Jarren Duran revealed he’d attempted suicide during the 2022 season in the new Netflix series “The Clubhouse: A Year With The Red Sox.” Shortly after the series premiered, a fan in Cleveland was ejected for directing an inappropriate comment at Duran referencing the attempt.

If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, call or text 988 for the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.

Sox acquire Noda

With Triston Casas and Romy Gonzalez out injured, the Red Sox have struggled to get by with little to no depth at first base.

Thursday the club brought in some badly needed reinforcements.

The Red Sox announced they have acquired first baseman Ryan Noda from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for cash considerations. Noda has been optioned to Triple-A Worcester, and to clear space on the 40-man roster the club has transferred outfielder Masataka Yoshida to the 60-day injured list.

The 29-year-old Noda has played in 164 MLB games, all coming with the Athletics between 2023-24. He’s batted .212 with a .344 on-base percentage, 26 doubles, 17 home runs and 58 RBI in the majors, and this season he’s batted .148 with a .633 OPS in 38 games with the Salt Lake Bees, the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate.

A left-handed batter, Noda was originally selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 15th round of the 2017 MLB Draft, and in addition to first base he can also play all three outfield positions.

Yoshida has yet to appear in a game this season after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery. He was placed on the IL on Opening Day retroactive to March 24 and has already nearly satisfied the 60-day minimum. Yoshida still isn’t expected back anytime soon, as the outfielder only resumed his throwing program this week and is only throwing up to 60 feet.

Fitts begins rehab assignment

Despite the inclement weather, Red Sox right-hander Richard Fitts made his first rehab start on schedule Thursday morning with the Portland Sea Dogs. Fitts threw three scoreless innings with four hits, no walks and two strikeouts in Portland’s 6-3 win over the Reading Fightin Phils.

Fitts has been on the 15-day injured list since April 13 with a right pectoral strain. Prior to the injury Fitts posted a 3.18 ERA over his first three starts after making the Opening Day roster out of spring training.