Cubs delay home opener vs. Pirates because of snow

The Chicago Cubs' home opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates has been postponed because of snow.

The Cubs tried pushing back the scheduled start time by an hour, and workers used handheld blowers to melt the snow on the tarp, but the accumulation and cold temperatures were too much to overcome. Snow covered the seats on the lower level and the playing surface at Wrigley Field in a scene more reminiscent of December than April.

"On the way out to the park, I had no idea if I was going to the Cubs convention [in January] or Opening Day, so I thought it was the right thing to do," manager Joe Maddon said.

The game was rescheduled for Tuesday afternoon, which was previously an off day for the first series between the National League Central rivals.

"It's rough out there," reliever Steve Cishek said. "We're disappointed. We wanted to get this home opener underway. But at the same time, I know some guys in the bullpen probably, like myself, could use an extra day off just to heal up a little bit and be ready for tomorrow."

Pirates right-hander Ivan Nova is expected to move back one day to start the series opener, and Maddon said Tyler Chatwood would go for the Cubs.

About 10 miles to the south, the Chicago White Sox were hosting the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday in a game delayed briefly by the wintry weather. This is Tampa Bay's only trip to Chicago this season.

Chicago is the last major league team to hold its home opener. It opened the season with a 5-4 road trip to Miami, Cincinnati and Milwaukee.

"Opening Day is always very special," Maddon said. "We've already played nine or 10 games, so it's a little different. You'd rather go out there with your uniform on and not five layers of clothing, [though]."

Pittsburgh is off to a surprising 7-2 start. It took three of four against Cincinnati in its previous series.

ESPN's Jesse Rogers and The Associated Press contributed to this report.