Best moments from last year's Field of Dreams Game
Two of baseball¡¯s most historic teams gathered on a tiny piece of land in Dyersville, Iowa, for the first (but not last) Field of Dreams Game on Aug. 12, 2021.
The game had everything. Star power up and down the Yankees and White Sox rosters. A three-time Oscar nominee in Kevin Costner, watching from the stands. A wild, walk-off ending that capped a perfect night.
And rows and rows of corn that made this ballpark scene different from any other in history.
Ahead of the 2022 edition between the Cubs and Reds on Thursday (pregame coverage begins at 6 p.m. ET/5 CT on FOX, with first pitch set for 7:15 ET/6:15 CT), here are the top moments of the last year's Field of Dreams Game.
1.TA walks it off
The second it left his bat, he KNEW it was gone. But it¡¯s no surprise Tim Anderson connected off Zack Britton with one out in the ninth inning of Thursday¡¯s exciting 9-8 victory, sending his 13th home run of the season ¡°cornward,¡± sending his teammates into a frenzy and raising the White Sox AL Central lead to 11 1/2 games with the walk-off blast.
The White Sox shortstop is a primetime player who thrives on primetime moments, and this one might be the most prime of his All-Star career. Credit should go to Seby Zavala, the White Sox No. 9 hitter, who was down 0-2 to Britton with one out and ended up working a walk. Anderson hit the next pitch to right, the clear power alley in this ballpark, for an Iowa winner.
2. Judge provides fireworks
The "Field of Dreams" setting seemed tailor-made for a larger-than-life superstar like Aaron Judge, who figured to be a good bet to take advantage of the cornfield¡¯s hitter-friendly dimensions. Judge connected not once but twice, mashing a three-run homer in the third inning off Cy Young Award candidate Lance Lynn before drawing the Yanks within a run in the ninth, crushing a two-run blast off closer Liam Hendriks. The five-RBI performance capped a memorable evening for Judge, who said that he savored every bit of the Dyersville show -- from airport to cornfield and back again.
3. Stanton (almost) steals the show
If not for Anderson¡¯s heroics in the bottom of the ninth inning, Giancarlo Stanton would have been remembered as the clutch star of the Field of Dreams Game. Stanton¡¯s go-ahead, two-run blast off Hendriks put the Yankees back in the driver¡¯s seat of this immensely entertaining affair, a drive to left field that sent Chicago¡¯s Leury Garc¨ªa into the wall. Despite the loss, Stanton said that the Dyersville game was an experience he¡¯ll always remember, even tucking some stalks of corn into the pockets of his uniform pants as souvenirs.
4. Movie stars in the house
A Field of Dreams Game just wouldn¡¯t be the same without "Field of Dreams" actors, and this event featured two. Fittingly, given how much the father-son theme of the film still resonates today, Ray Kinsella (Costner) and his pops, John (Dwier Brown) were part of the Iowa festivities.
¡°Hey Dad? You wanna have a catch?¡± Brown tweeted, while standing on the field.
5. Pregame chills
Fittingly, Costner was here, there and everywhere during the Iowa festivities, including on the field for a pregame ceremony that was everything a fan of this particular movie could have hoped for.
With dramatic music from the movie playing, Costner, holding a baseball, emerged from the cornfield beyond the outfield. He looked around, soaking in the scene, and then turned back to the outfield, where White Sox and Yankees players, dressed in throwback uniforms and looking so much like the characters in ¡°Field of Dreams,¡± walked out from the cornfields. Just like the film.??
¡°Thirty years ago, on the other side of that corn, we filmed a move that stood the test of time,¡± Costner said to the crowd. ¡°Tonight, thanks to the enduring impact that little movie had, it¡¯s allowed us to come here, again, on a field that Major League Baseball made. We come to see a first place White Sox play the mighty Yankees, in a field that was once corn. It¡¯s perfect.¡±
6. More history for Abreu
Another day, another piece of White Sox history for first baseman José Abreu.
Abreu connected on an 0-2 pitch from Yankees starter Andrew Heaney in the first inning, and drove a line drive into the left field corn for the first home run in Iowa in AL/NL history. But that home run also was the 221st of Abreu¡¯s illustrious career, tying him with Hall of Famer Harold Baines for third all time in franchise history. Frank Thomas, who is No. 1 with 448 homers, and Paul Konerko, who is No. 2 among all the White Sox with 432, both were in attendance Thursday in Dyersville.
7. Hi, Mom!
There¡¯s a rule of thumb involving Eloy Jiménez and the White Sox. If Jim¨¦nez is in a game, either at designated hitter or left field as he was on Thursday night in Iowa, then he¡¯s almost certainly having fun. Jim¨¦nez showed that love of the game during the pregame introductions, as he waved, smiled and mouthed ¡°Hi, Mom¡± when they announced his name. The enjoyment only grew for Jim¨¦nez in the third when he hit a three-run opposite field home run to erase a 3-2 deficit and give the White Sox a 5-3 lead. Jim¨¦nez just missed another home run in the fifth, flying out to the wall in center.
8. Debate, settled
Maybe this isn¡¯t the MOST controversial topic to find its way to Twitter, but it does seem to have a place in social media discourse: Is it ¡°Have a catch¡± or ¡°Play Catch?¡±
In that famous final scene in "Field of Dreams," Costner¡¯s character says, ¡°Hey Dad, want to have a catch?¡± To some fans, the phrasing is grating.
Mr. Costner, what say you?
¡°I guess that¡¯s an East Coast thing -- ¡®have a catch,¡¯¡± Costner said. ¡°I read that and immediately it was just like was fingernails on a chalkboard for me. I¡¯d say to my dad, ¡®Let's play catch, let's play catch.¡¯ And the ['Field of Dreams'] director said, ¡®It¡¯s have a catch. Have a catch.¡¯ He was very detailed about that idea. It was a weird thing I had to get my arms around it. It was almost like I had to learn how to say it.¡±
9. Roll call
A regular feature at Yankee Stadium is ¡°Roll Call,¡± where fans open every game by chanting the lineup, loudly. That Bronx tradition made its way to Iowa, thanks to (according to Twitter) Yankees fan John Fuller, who got the party started from his seat at the Field of Dreams.
¡°I'd like to announce that I talked the Yankees fans sitting in front of me into starting that roll call and walked them thru the process of getting it going,¡± Fuller tweeted. ¡°You're welcome NY. Swish is one section over from us and loving it.¡±