MLB Yankees vs White Sox at The Field of Dreams
From the promo video it looks like they are going to build a little stadium right next to the Field of Dreams and I’m not sure what the point is. I understand why they can’t play on the actual field so this seems like a bad idea to me.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:26 AM ^
With the Yankees playing, expect a game so long that some of the current players may turn into some "old ghosts" in the middle of it.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:39 AM ^
The game duration will be measured by how high the cornstalks grew.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:00 AM ^
Should be as high as an elephant's eye by the 7th inning stretch.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:45 AM ^
The corn might not get that high until Oklahoma plays Iowa State in a Big XII baseball game on a beautiful morning when Hugh Jackman sings the national anthem.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:35 AM ^
I think this is baseball's version of outdoor hockey in the NHL.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:00 AM ^
Yeah, kind of the same approach. Detroit played the Royals at the CWS in Omaha. Cubs will play the Pirates in Williamsport on the 19th in the MLB-Little league Classic
August 8th, 2019 at 12:47 PM ^
Or college basketball's version of outdoor games on an aircraft carrier.
Yes, but it's also subtly different. The Winter Classic is reward event for the League's high-profile teams. It's been awarded to all the US Original Six teams (though technically the Rangers haven't hosted) and other big teams in the Northeast. The games are hosted in the city where the fans already live.
These weird baseball games in Iowa, Nebraska, London, and Williamsport are outside of the major cities that host the teams. Rob Manfred said, they're trying to bring the game to the people in the parts of the country that don't normally get to see it, since they're too far away from the big cities. It's similar to the old barnstorming tours of early professional sports. Pretty cool, IMO.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:35 AM ^
I'm not so invested in the movie tie-in, but I really like the idea of teams playing games in states without a franchise.
The London series between Boston and NYY was fun and gimmicky, but I think it's better for growth purposes to play an occasional game somewhere off the beaten path stateside.
Personally, I would like to have seen Montana.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:46 AM ^
Those two games in London took a combined 9+ hours to play. If that type of baseball was played during the Revolutionary War, we would have bored them into submission.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:49 AM ^
...where you could ride shirtless on a small tiny hoss. Just you and the pygmy pony, riding all along the borderline over by your dental floss bush. You'd be mighty grand!
Yippy-ty-o-ty-ayy!
August 8th, 2019 at 11:06 AM ^
Oh well played comrade.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:38 AM ^
No papers?
August 8th, 2019 at 11:48 AM ^
Checking missle silos?
August 8th, 2019 at 12:40 PM ^
Montana? This from traitorous Captain Vasili Borodin in Hunt For Red October:
I will live in Montana. And I will marry a round American woman and raise rabbits, and she will cook them for me. And I will have a pickup truck... maybe even a "recreational vehicle." And drive from state to state. Do they let you do that?
What is it with you Russkies and Montana?
August 10th, 2019 at 2:44 PM ^
Duh. Why do you think HP dropped the Montana reference?!
August 8th, 2019 at 12:50 PM ^
..."I really like the idea of playing games in states without a franchise"
When do think they'll schedule one in Michigan?
August 9th, 2019 at 12:39 PM ^
Grand Rapids would be a nice town to host it...
August 8th, 2019 at 10:41 AM ^
This is such a horrible idea. I visited the field of dreams this summer with my boys and it was incredible to see. It is just like in the movie and hasn’t changed really at all other than a tiny souvenir stand they have located across the parking lot from the field. My boys and I were able to throw hit and run The bases. To top it off we were traveling back to Michigan and we stopped in Davenport Iowa for the night and they had an anniversary showing of the movie at the IMAX theater. It was one of the big highlights of our trip. I hate if they are going to really build another field there and ruin this experience.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:52 AM ^
Yep - I agree with you 100%. I don't see a way to not ruin the charm of the site. All for 30 pieces of silver.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:58 AM ^
Wasn't the FIeld of Dreams in financial trouble? I agree this seems like it could go very bad, but perhaps they needed the money or else they might clsoe down?
August 8th, 2019 at 11:15 AM ^
I know the land was originally owned by 2 separate Dyersville families (for logistical reasons, the diamond needed to be built across 2 properties).
Those families kept the field up for ~ 20 years but then sold out to a private partnership 10 years ago.
I suppose the private partnership may now have financial problems. But - all they need to do is keep up a ballfield. Mow the lawn, rake the dirt, pay the electricity bills for the lights, keep the grass green. The site gets almost 100,000 visitors a year. Seems like donations just from visitors would cover those costs easily. If not that, Dyersville should be able to help. Not nearly as many people would take that US-20 exit if not for the ballfield.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:33 AM ^
Thanks. That sale might be what I was thinking of.
A quick Google search doesn't clarify things much: in late 2016, the private partnership won a long court battle to permit it to develop the site (e.g., add additional ball fields). Lots of tourist places have done this (e.g., Cedar Point; Orlando) but I don't see any mention of it online and according to Wikipedia "it has yet to materialize".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Field_of_Dreams_(Dubuque_County,_Iowa)
I would think things are not going *too* great financially -- the field was damaged by a vandal last winter, and the owner had to rely on the gifts of local minor league teams to fix it up.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/2018/04/21/field-dreams-field-iowa/539112002/
So, in short, I'm guessing they need the money that this Yanks-White Sox game will provide.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:59 AM ^
You are underestimating the expenses.
Yes, mow the lawn and rake the dirt, but to do that, you need employees, who not only receive salary but benefits. Or you can hire a maintenance company but that isn’t cheep.
As you noted, electricity. Also, water for that sized property isn’t cheap - certainly over $1000 per month.
Other expenses include:
Re-seading the grass annually
Pest control
Insurance - which, for a tourist attraction that gets over 100,000 visitors is VERY expensive, likely into the tens of thousands just for liability insurance.
Tax professional to file the partnership’s returns.
Someone to actually manage the property and the partnership (pay all of those expenses, deal with issues, etc.)
Marketing - contrary to the famous movie line, if you just build it, people don’t just come unless they know it’s there. FOD definitely pays for some advertising.
Staff to man the field, assist visitors, arrange special events (which they host), etc.
There are a hundred other hidden costs in operating this facility.
August 8th, 2019 at 12:51 PM ^
Maybe that new stadium will become home for a minor league or independent league team -- say the Dyersville Dream Team or the Dyersville Ghosts.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:56 AM ^
I feel like Field of Dreams may be the most overrated sports movie ever, and maybe one of the most overrated movies of any kind.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:00 AM ^
As a baseball fan I fully agree.
And Kevin Costner is waaayyy overrated as an actor, too.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:00 AM ^
Agree x 2.
August 8th, 2019 at 12:55 PM ^
It may be "overrated", but if, like me, your father had died a few months before you first saw that movie in a theater, then your memories of Field of Dreams and your feelings about that movie might be enhanced by the circumstances.
I played a lot of baseball in my life and now my boys play a lot of baseball. I grew up in the 70's and we "played catch". Now the boys "throw". Until I watched this movie, I never heard the term "have a catch". When I first seen this movie, that term just bothered me for some reason. I assume that is how they used to talk back then?
With all due respect, and complete understanding that your experience at the time you saw it may have impacted you, but that scene is just really lame to me.
Terrible acting, really cheesy score. I just thought it was a bad movie.
If you've ever heard this song (that I might've been playing on my college radio show before you were born, if you're younger than 49), then you'll understand the term "different strokes for different folks". In the end, we're all "everyday people".
I guess you're entitled to your opinion, but the fact remains most rankings list you see of top sports movies of all time, Field of Dreams is one of the highest ranked. And people keep watching it, so there's that too.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:57 AM ^
It does seem poorly conceived and will likely ruin the site's charm having a stadium built there.
August 8th, 2019 at 10:59 AM ^
Of all teams, they choose the fucking White Sox??
August 8th, 2019 at 11:01 AM ^
That's the team that Kevin Costner's dad played for IIRC
August 8th, 2019 at 11:08 AM ^
I think the white Sox are because the movie has Shoeless Joe Jackson and the rest of the 1919 Black sox team in it.
August 8th, 2019 at 12:59 PM ^
If they'd wanted to link the game to the 1919 White Sox team that was portrayed in Field of Dreams, then it would've made more sense to have the White Sox playing their 1919 World Series opponent, the Cincinnati Reds. LINK
Nobody is showing up to watch Mr. Redlegs.
So, better dead than Redlegs? (Not sure if that would make sense for your avatar.)
August 8th, 2019 at 11:01 AM ^
My partner is from the town the Field of Dreams is located. Dyersville, Iowa. It's a cool place to visit if you like the movie.
I'm fine with it, but only if the tickets are affordable and Dyersville and area residents are given priority.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:03 AM ^
This is a silly marketing stunt.
Doesn’t seem like much of an experience for current fans. In terms of growing the game how many new fans or youth players are you going to get out of an 8k attendance game in Iowa based on a 30 year old movie?
And if you’re going to put a Chicago team in Iowa it should be the Cubs.
I think the one-off games should pretty much all be international games in countries that care about baseball and send dudes to the majors. MiLB covers just about all of the domestic midsize cities without major league teams but if there’s a gap there somewhere add that town to the list. The Omaha CWS game is good, too.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:06 AM ^
I'm assuming it's the White Sox because that is the team that Kevin Costner's dad played for in the movie. White Sox, Cubs or Cardinals. Those are the main fanbases in Iowa. Some Milwaukee fans too.
August 8th, 2019 at 11:30 AM ^
That makes sense but the gimmick seems like it would work with whatever teams you put there. I admittedly don't know the fan makeup of Iowa but was thinking the Cubs because they have the AAA team in the state. Honestly having MLB teams play at their AAA affiliate for one game seems like a better idea to grow and market the game than this type of thing.
I'm a Yankees fan in Chicago so I went to half of the series @ the White Sox this year. One sellout and the other was an announced 39k. Fans around us said the other games were near capacity, too (as an aside it was fun to see that Sox fans are back given that ballpark has been pretty empty the last few years).
This is 30k+ fewer fans who get to see the game in person just so they can do some Field of Dreams intros and a segment or two on SportsCenter.
August 8th, 2019 at 12:15 PM ^
I don't think it's really trying to grow the game. I think most people that will pay attention to it are already baseball fans. Everyone who hasn't seen the movie or is less than a casual fan is just going to be like "why the hell are they playing in a cornfield?"
I think it's a cool idea. How I feel about it in the long run depends on how they treat the city of Dyersville. If the local residents are priced out or not given priority, then I'm not a fan of it. I don't really get doing it as a one time thing. If they're going to put up another field, might as well make it permanent and have teams play there every year, kinda like the Hall of Fame Game.
I'm all about teams playing at their affiliates. It'd be cool if every team had to do a series at their A, AA, AAA teams once a year.
August 8th, 2019 at 12:52 PM ^
I hope it's a good experience for Dysersville - this can definitely be cool for residents or those with connections there like you. It's one game out of more than 2,400 so not a big deal that it doesn't serve a bigger purpose than hey this might be fun for some people. That's a good reason to do a thing!
I'm just generally frustrated when MLB does a new thing that doesn't grow the game as a 30something baseball fan who's seeing the decline in interest with my peers and especially those younger than me. That's obviously a much bigger discussion than this one.
Baseball was by far my favorite sport as a kid. It feel off quite a bit in favor of college sports and the NHL/NBA and soccer as I got in college. I play fantasy baseball solely so I can try to keep up with things. But MLB does a piss poor job of grooming that next generation of fans. Still after that boomer money I guess, but when they're gone, fanbases are going to dwindle significantly IMO
Actually, John Kinsella who is Ray Kinsella's dad in Field of Dreams, played for the Yankees, so maybe that's the point of the connection between the White Sox and Yankees. "If you build it, he will come!"
August 8th, 2019 at 11:04 AM ^
One of my favorite move lines is:
"Hey! This heaven?"
"No. It's Iowa."
August 8th, 2019 at 11:13 AM ^
Is it possible that Dyersville made an agreement with the MLB to take down whatever structures they put up?