Learn English – the origin of the phrase “hot take”

The literal sense of rain check, which is an Americanism, is first found in the 1880s in reference to a baseball game. The practice of giving a rain check to a ticketholder was formalized in 1890 in the constitution of the National League. In other words, if it rained (something the purchaser had no influence over) and the game was postponed, the ticket holder could come back for another game.

From wikipedia:

A ticket given to a spectator at an outdoor event providing for a refund of his or her entrance money or admission at a later date, should the event be interrupted by rain.

According to wikipedia, quoting OED, it was first used in baseball around 1880.