If You Rebuild It, The Twins Will Come

In the 2022 game, the Cubs beat the Reds 4-2, but the event is perhaps best remembered for Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr. having a catch.

The New Permanent Ballpark

In 2021, White Sox legend and Hall of Famer Frank Thomas led a group that purchased a controlling interest in the Field of Dreams movie site and ballpark in Eastern Iowa. In April 2022, they unveiled an $80M plan that included nine fields, an amphitheater, a boutique hotel, and an RV park.

Construction began, and most of the original "pop-up" ballpark was demolished.

Most of the Thomas group's envisioned developments never materialized. Supply chain issues and cost overruns put a "Big Hurt" on the effort.

The nonprofit Dyersville Events stepped in and bought the site for $27M, with the purchase mostly funded through state grants. The hotel, RV park, and amphitheater plan was narrowed to a permanent ballpark with modern MLB-quality locker rooms and an expanded press area, plus the youth fields. The ballpark is surrounded by 159 acres of cornfields.

Construction on the permanent ballpark began in November 2024.

In the "ballpark" of $50M and 19 months later, the Field of Dreams Ballpark opened with an "If you build it" eastern Iowa high school series on June 17th, 2026. The six high school games were meant both to create memories for the players from the 12 participating high schools and to serve as a dress rehearsal for the MLB game.

On July 8th the Nothwoods League, a collegiate summer league, played its All-Star Game there.

Tuesday night, the Triple-A Iowa Cubs and St. Paul Saints will play there (7:30 ET/ 6:30 CT) on MLB Network.

The stadium's permanent capacity is more than 4,000 seats, with the ability to nearly double that through temporary seating for big events like Thursday night's game and a Carrie Underwood concert over Labor Day weekend.

And in 2027, the Field of Dreams Ballpark will get a regular tenant with the Dyersville Dreamers joining the Northwoods League.

MLB Moves to Other Specialty Game Venues

With the Dyersville site under construction, MLB instead played specialty games at other venues.

In 2024, the Giants and Cardinals played in "MLB At Rickwood Field: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues. Rickwood Field opened in 1910 and is the oldest surviving ballpark in the United States. The Giants were selected because Willie Mays began his professional career at Rickwood Field playing for the Birmingham Black Barons. Mays unfortunately died two days before the game took place.

In August of 2025, the Braves and Reds met in the "MLB Speedway Classic" in Bristol, TN, with a regular-season record of 91,032 in attendance, though many did not return the following day after the game was suspended in the bottom of the first inning due to too much water on the field.

The Twins and Phillies Matchup

On August 24th, 2025, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced that Major League Baseball would return to the Field of Dreams site with the Twins and Phillies meeting in the new permanent ballpark. The game will be streamed on Netflix with John Deere as the presenting sponsor.

To match the old-fashioned feel, both teams will wear throwback uniforms. The Phillies will wear gray jerseys based on what the team wore from 1939 to 1941. The Twins will wear white home jerseys modeled after their original look from the 1960s.

The Twins and Phillies will play in Iowa Thursday night with an off-day Friday before resuming their three-game series at Target Field on Saturday. The Twins are designated as the home team for Thursday night.

More than 25 Hall of Famers are expected to attend, including Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, Joe Mauer and Rod Carew. MLB has hinted that Kevin Costner will also be a part of the broadcast.

While MLB did not share why the Twins were selected, the Field of Dreams is a 4-5 hour drive from Target Field, and the Twins have a number of fans in Iowa.

While it's a signature MLB event, it will be an important game for both teams in their quests to make the playoffs. Both the Twins and Phillies are battling for Wild Card spots.

The Twins were buyers at the trade deadline and are just 1.5 games back of the third Wild Card in the American League, while the Phillies are tied with the Diamondbacks for the final NL Wild Card spot.

The Minnesota Connection

There is also one other Minnesota connection.

Those familiar with the movie will no doubt remember Moonlight Graham, played by Burt Lancaster. As Hollywood is known to do, the movie took a few liberties with his story.

The real Archie Graham made his Major League debut as a defensive replacement for the New York Giants in an 11-1 victory over the Brooklyn Superbas. He entered the game in the bottom of the eighth and was on deck in the top of the ninth when the third out was recorded.

Graham played right field in the bottom of the ninth. A few days later, he was sent to the minors, where he played several more seasons but never made it back to the Majors.

After his professional baseball career ended, he settled in Chisholm, Minnesota, on the Iron Range, where he practiced medicine for half a century, including 44 years as the physician for the Chisholm public schools.

The origins of the Moonlight nickname are unclear, but it was likely because of his speed, with some believing him to be the fastest player in professional baseball at the time.

The term moonlighting, which refers to a second job, did not become a popular term until the 1950s. Most sports writers of his day referred to him as "Doc" because he was going to medical school in the offseason.

On the 100th anniversary of his one Major League game, the Twins held "Doc Graham" night at the Metrodome. Chisholm hosts an annual festival called Doc "Moonlight" Graham Days.

Coming Back?

With the new permanent ballpark, there is already speculation that MLB will return to the site in 2027.

There has been no announcement, but if you rebuild it, they will come.