Forecast: 2 miserable days ahead

Rain is likely Wednesday afternoon and evening, and again from Thursday night into Friday.

There's even a chance of a little snow accumulation with the second storm.

The timing looks unsettling for tailgaters and fans in the stands at Citizens Bank Park, where the Phillies host an exhibition game at 4:05 Wednesday afternoon and the home opener at 1:05 p.m. Friday.

Good thing umbrellas are permitted in the ballpark.

The bigger concern, of course, is for the sold-out opener against the Houston Astros.

Rain seems likely, but the forecast still has a lot of uncertainty.

The low hasn't formed yet, and the energy that will feed it was still gathering on the west coast of Canada this morning,said meteorologist Anthony Gigi of the National Weather Service in Mount Holly.

We might not get any precipitation, or it might be gone before the first pitch, said Gigi.

"There's a lot of what ifs, but I don't think you can say unequivocally it won't snow on Friday," he said.

Any accumulating snow, though, would mostly fall Thursday night into Friday morning - more of a threat to mess up pregame tailgating than action on the field.

Then again, tailgaters might have an easier time chilling beer.

More likely is some steady or occasionally heavy rain overnight, perhaps enough to cause flooding of small streams and low-lying or poorly drained roads.

Several recent extended forecasts - including for Wednesday - at first included a chance of snow, only to wind up with minimal or no white stuff in the city.

Maybe a few flakes will be seen Wednesday - if the storm arrives during colder morning temperatures, Gigi said.

Areas farther north, including the Lehigh Valley, are more likely to see some snow mixing in Wednesday night.

Temperatures should steadily rise, from today's high around 50 with an overnight low near freezing to a more normal upper 50s with lows in the upper 30s on Sunday.

For more on the forecast, go to http://go.philly.com/weather.