(KMOX) - MLB's first Field of Dreams game on Thursday night in Dyersville, Iowa was a blockbuster hit. And after commissioner Rob Manfred committed to bringing another game to the cornfield it would only be appropriate for the St. Louis Cardinals to be there.
When this game was first announced, the original plan was for the Yankees to play the White Sox in 2020. But then the Cardinals were named as the replacement team to face Chicago due to pandemic travel restrictions. Eventually, the whole thing was postponed a year and the Yankees were put back into the game, which ended in some movie magic:
Now with Manfred all but guaranteeing another game on the set of the 1989 classic "Field of Dreams," I'd say the sequel must include the Cardinals. Here are a few reasons why:
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B.F.I.B.
There is no other collection of true baseball fans than the rowdy and respectful Cardinals fans. And there's no group that would appreciate it more than St. Louis fans.
Although it may be exhausting for us Midwesterners to get over the misused baseball jargon that is "have a catch." We'll "play catch."
The toughest part may be for Cardinals fans to actually secure tickets, as Thursday's game was the fourth most expensive ticket on the secondary market in MLB history (behind only a few games in the 2016 World Series).
Iowa is Cardinals country
Although it's tougher now to hear the 50,000 red-hot watts of KMOX, the Cardinals Radio Network is still the largest in all of baseball. And six of those partner stations playing Cardinals baseball nearly every summer night are located in Iowa. And one of them, KMAQ in Maquoketa, is less than an hour's drive away from Dyersville.
If the Cardinals are there, fans will come.
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Rivalry
The matchup of Yankees and White Sox was a solid choice. The White Sox were a must with the strongest connection to the movie via Joe Jackson and the Eight Men Out. Then, for TV ratings, of course, the mighty Yanks had to be there. But in 2022 you're going to need a new storyline and a rivalry game would fit in perfectly.
Enter Cubs vs Cardinals.
Cubs manager David Ross already spilled the beans to reporters that his team may be part of the game. Then the Des Moines Register reported a "source close to the situation" confirmed the Cubs would be in the next game. So now the Cardinals fit makes even more sense.
Sure, the Milwaukee Brewers are closer in proximity to the Field of Dreams. But they can brew their barley, wheat and rye in Wisconsin. We need some corn-fed Cardinals fans from all across the Midwest at next year's game.