Snowfall delays Rockies game

Team owner, executives help crews clear field

DENVER Dick Monfort was quite formidable on the mound — of snow, that is.

Shovel in hand, the Colorado Rockies owner joined a crew of team employees helping to dig out snowcovered Coors Field, clearing the way for the Rockies and New York Mets to finally play ball.

This is one assignment that didn’t give him cold feet, just a sore back.

Well worth it, though, to try and squeeze in a doubleheader against the New York Mets on Tuesday. The first pitch had been pushed back two hours to finish clearing the field. At the scheduled game time, there were still piles of snow in front of the Rockies dugout and along the right-field line. Now, there’s hardly a trace of snow around.

Monfort had plenty of company removing the snow, as vicepresident Bill Geivett — wearing a heavy Montreal Expos jacket — and chief baseball officer Dan O’Dowd also scooped snow off the turf as well. Even Mets GM Sandy Alderson pitched in on a bank of snow near the team’s dugout.

The Mets haven’t played since Saturday after having two games wiped out by weather. Wintry conditions in Minneapolis Sunday forced their game against the Twins to be called off. The game Monday also was postponed due to a heavy spring snow storm passing through the area.

Not that the starter that day, Jon Garland, minds too much. “I’ll pitch anywhere if I’m getting outs,” said Garland, who’s finding his form after missing all of last year following shoulder surgery. “This weather is not comfortable by any means. For the most part, you’re out there miserable. It’s not fun at all.” Simply wear more clothing? “You don’t want to go out of the norm to where it’s comfortable for you to get that range of motion, get that fluid pitching,” Garland said. “But yeah, you try to layer up as much as you can.”