Yankees and Aaron Judge delighted to play in Field of Dreams game

Like most kids who love baseball, Aaron Judge watched “Field of Dreams” when he was young. He had no idea, decades later, that he would honor the diamond near where Kevin Costner shot the iconic 1989 film in the cornfields of Iowa.

“It’s kind of a dream come true,” the Yankees outfielder told Zoom on Wednesday after a 5-2 win over the Royals. “You never think you have the chance to play Field of Dreams. But seizing this opportunity, the chance to step in the corn, it’s going to be a great moment, a special moment. “

The judge’s teammates and manager echoed this sentiment, that this game against the White Sox – which the 1919 Black Sox team featured prominently in the film – on Thursday night will be unlike any other they will play. this season. It will be played in a 7,911 seat stadium that was built just north of where the film was shot. The original land is a tourist attraction. A corn maze has been built outside the outer field walls and a path connects the two fields. The dimensions are similar to those of the old Comiskey Park, where the White Sox played from 1910 to 1990. Both teams will wear homecoming uniforms based on their 1919 sons, adding to the nostalgic tenor of the game.

Reliever Chad Green said his teammates have been talking about it since last week, discussing enthusiastically the opportunity that awaits them in Dyersville, Iowa. The match was supposed to be played last season, but it has been postponed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It will be pretty cool to get the whole experience,” said Green. “Take a tour of the grounds and see the house and just enjoy it. The guys can’t wait to go. ”

Aaron Boone was able to discover some of these novelties. First, as a manager when the Yankees played against the Red Sox in London in 2019. Then, as a broadcaster, he was able to call up a game for ESPN in 2016 at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and has also could call the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. He always dreamed, as a child, of making it as a player.

“Seeing it was pretty cool,” Boone said. “Field of Dreams will be similar to that. “

The judge only has one problem with the special event. After Thursday, both teams have a day off, then resume the series in Chicago on Saturday.

“I would like us to play three games there,” he said. “Everyone is doing all this work to build the stadium, to do what they have to do, and that’s it for a game. But I know everyone in this clubhouse is thrilled about it.