If they build it, maybe they still won’t come.
MLB’s highly anticipated “Field of Dreams” game, which was scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 13, has been canceled, according to The Athletic.
The news comes amid multiple reports more Cardinals players and staff have tested positive for the virus on Monday. The “Field of Dreams” game, which was to be held in Dyersville, IA, was not canceled as a result of rising positive COVID-19 tests within the Cardinals organization, but for “logistical problems,” according to the report.
The league had still been deciding whether or not the game could be played with fans in attendance, as of a July 6 update of the event posted on MLB.com. Construction on the 8,000-seat ballpark, adjacent to the original field used in the movie, had continued even during MLB’s four-month shutdown.
The game was initially to be played between the Yankees and the White Sox. The 60-game coronavirus-shortened season changed many matchups in baseball to try to limit travel between states. The Yankees’ schedule was changed to reflect more “local” play, so the Cardinals were swapped in to play the White Sox instead.
The Cardinals have been dealing with their own coronavirus outbreak since Friday. St. Louis postponed its matchup against the Brewers after two players tested positive for the virus, MLB announced then. The team announced on Sunday it was still awaiting results of a number of tests, but ESPN reported the team was bracing for more test positives in the coming days.
By Monday, six players and three staff members had been diagnosed with the virus, per multiple reports. The players are said to be asymptomatic and the team was in the process of securing cars for the players with COVID-19 to drive six hours back to St. Louis from Milwaukee, where they were isolating and awaiting the results of four inconclusive test results.
The Cardinals upcoming series against the Tigers has also been postponed.
