The first-ever MLB at Field of Dreams event was an overwhelming success, from the positive feedback of the scenery itself to the historic TV ratings, which were the highest for a regular season game on FOX in 16 years.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred was hardly surprised at the popularity for the special event, and the demand for an encore.
“I was very confident that it was gonna be a success,” Manfred told Craig Carton on Thursday. “Everybody in and around the sport loved this idea from the first time that it surfaced. We had an amazing run of good fortune. The people responsible for the event in the commissioner’s office devoted extreme care to making sure that everything about the setting was perfect. It was right down to the dugout phones, covered in wooden boxes so they didn’t look out of place. The Gatorade thing was in a wooden cupboard…great thought was given to how the fans would enter and how the cornfield was gonna play for the fan entrance and then of course the player entrance.”
The scenery was a fitting nod to the National Pastime, from the clear outfield walls to reveal the cornfields to the throwback uniforms that both the Yankees and White Sox wore for the 9-8 thriller that Chicago won on a walk-off. But the movie itself was front and center as well, as MLB captured lead actor Kevin Costner walking onto the field for the first time.
“Kevin Costner, I have to tell you, the thought and emotion that he invested in the pregame ceremony, the entire undertaking…he was very interested from the beginning, and I cannot say enough about what he added to the event,” Manfred said. “He was absolutely phenomenal.”
The league has already announced that there will be another game in Iowa, and many have begun clamoring for another game at a new site, many hoping for “The Sandlot” to be the next forum. Manfred hasn’t committed to another location, but he does have a second favorite baseball movie after “Field of Dreams.”
“I’ve always had a soft spot for two baseball movies,” Manfred said. ‘”Field of Dreams” is one of them…the other that would be right there, “The Natural” is a great movie.”
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“The Natural” doesn’t have a notable venue for a game, but “Field of Dreams” certainly did, and while the atmosphere felt perfect, the most important outcome was the excitement on the field, which more than lived up to its billing.
“At the end of the day, for us, it’s always about the game shining,” Manfred said. “And man, we got one hell of a game.”
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