Damaged dome makes Gopher baseball homeless

Collapsed Metrodome
The collapsed roof of the Metrodome is shown in this aerial view in Minneapolis on Sunday, Dec. 12, 2010. The inflatable roof of the Metrodome collapsed Sunday after a snowstorm that dumped 17 inches on Minneapolis. No one was hurt, but the roof failure sent the NFL scrambling to find a new venue for the Vikings' game against the New York Giants.
AP Photo/Ann Heisenfelt

College baseball programs are scrambling to find a ballpark -- now that officials with the Metrodome say that stadium's damaged roof won't be repaired until March at the earliest.

The University of Minnesota plays its home games in the Metrodome, and coach John Anderson said work is just beginning on finding a new venue for the hundreds of games his team and many other colleges have scheduled for the facility.

"And it's not like you can just run down the street and find another place to play," Anderson said. "It's multiple teams that are affected here and trying to find another venue to play in somewhere in the country, and the cost associated with that, and also the missed class time and the disruption it does to the student's schedule. It's a daunting challenge."

Anderson said the university's on-campus baseball stadium isn't suitable for games right now. He said Siebert Field wasn't maintained once the Gophers started playing at the Dome. He said the Twins' Target Field may be an alternative for at least some Gopher games.

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