It Is a Game of Inches, but a Matter of Degrees

The Pioneer League game between the Idaho Falls Gems and Butte Copper Kings was suspended in the seventh inning Saturday because of snow.

“It was 88 degrees yesterday, so I’d say, yes, this was unusual,” said Mark Ruckwardt, Butte’s general manager. “Just another crazy day in minor league baseball, I guess.”

Skies were overcast at the start of the game at Alumni Coliseum, which is at an altitude of 5,800 feet in the Rocky Mountains. The temperature was on its way to dropping to a record low in the 30s. Once the game began, so did the flurries.

“The snow got harder as the game went on. I’d say about an inch has accumulated in the last hour,” Ruckwardt said.

Several of the players were from the Dominican Republic and had never seen snow. Neither had Idaho Falls coach Phil Dale, a native Australian.

Ruckwardt said some players were crowded into his office.

“That’s where the only heater in the ballpark is,” he said.

The Copper Kings hoped to draw about 2,000 fans for the game because of the presence of the Miami Maniac, the mascot of the Hurricanes’ football team, who tours minor league parks during the summer. Instead, the crowd was about 400.

“Well, at least it was good for the Maniac,” Ruckwardt said. “He got some great pictures of him in the snow.”