MINNEAPOLIS--In yet another bizarre weather occurrence that has confounded experts, a powerful spring storm dumped two feet of snow inside the Metrodome on Monday. The storm, described by meteorologists as “once in a lifetime” broke out during the Twins-Devil Rays game, forcing officials to call the game and begin the arduous task of shoveling the field and bleachers.

It was the latest in a string of strange and unseasonable weather that has forced the cancellation of several Major League games.

“This has been a pretty odd start to the spring,” said John Curtis, of the National Weather Service. “And this indoor snowstorm takes the cake. From what I hear, the snow just started falling from the Metrodome roof. Then it started falling harder. Next thing you know, people in the stands were throwing snowballs at each other. It’s kind of creepy, but I guess we shouldn’t be too alarmist about it. I’m sure it’s just part of the natural cycle of nature.”

As for how the storm started, Curtis and his colleagues at the NOAA can only guess.

“We have our theories, but nothing really concrete,” said Curtis. “Some people think it started when the moisture inside the Metrodome collided with cool air seeping through the vents. My theory is that there was a cloud formation over the ballpark and it got caught up in a cold front moving through the area and the cold front enveloped the Metrodome, and then…I don’t know…made it snow inside, I guess. I just hope baseball has learned its lesson and will stop scheduling games in cold weather cities in April. You’re just begging for something like this to happen.”

During the snow delay, Twins players entertained fans by sliding across the tarp, making snow angels, and having a snowball fight of their own.

“Once the snow started falling, it kind of felt like a snow day,” said centerfielder Torii Hunter. “We all felt like a bunch of little kids out there. My favorite part was when me and Justin [Morneau] tried to circle the bases, but we kept falling down and we were sliding all over the place like fools. My least favorite part was when it started snowing really hard and the wind was blowing it sideways and my nose started running and then it dawned on me that all this was happening indoors.”

“But the worst thing,” he added, “was the fact that I’ve been preaching this global warming bullshit to my teammates for months now, and then we have a goddamn blizzard in the Metrodome! Boy do I have egg on my face. Obviously the planet is getting colder.”

Fans exiting the Metrodome seemed to take the blizzard in stride, however, and expressed disappointment that the game was called off.

“Aww, come on, we’re from Minnesota. We’re used to this stuff,” said 46 year-old Jean Pressel. “In fact, I wish they kept the game going so the D-Rays would have to deal with playing in a blizzard. Too cold for you, boys? They don’t have this kind of weather in Tampa, do they? Heh heh. See, this is called a ‘home field advantage.’ Of course, it’s a little odd that it would happen inside, but I don’t really think about that stuff. It’s better just to joke around about it and act like it’s normal.”

24 hours after the storm, grounds crew workers were still clearing snow from the field and stands. Team officials say the field should be ready for the Twins next home stand, but admitted they have “no way” of preventing a similar occurrence as long as they play in an indoor facility.

“The cleanup is under way and we’ll be ready for the next home stand,” said GM Terry Ryan. “We’d love to be able to say this will never happen again, but honestly, it might. Until we open our new ballpark in 2010, we are stuck with this place. The new place won’t have a roof, so we won’t have to worry about any more of these freaky indoor blizzards. All we’ll have to worry about are tornadoes, monsoons, and the occasional frog storm.”

Copyright 2007, The Brushback - Do not reprint without permission. This article is satire and is not intended as actual news.