Iowa may be heaven, but it’s not the only field of dreams around. Per a report in the San Francisco Chronicle, MLB’s third annual Field of Dreams game is expected to be played at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Ala., between the San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals.
Opened in 1910 by industrialist Rick Woodward as a home for his professional team, the Birmingham Barons, Rickwood Field is the oldest professional ballpark in America. It was also home to the Birmingham Black Barons of the Negro Leagues for over four decades, hosting legends like Willie Mays (who played for the team from 1948-50 before joining the New York Giants in 1951). The Giants and Cardinals would likely wear throwback uniforms, as with past Field of Dreams games.
“I would love (wearing throwbacks), that would be really cool,” Giants first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. told the Chronicle. “It’ll definitely give you the full effect of the game. I hope it is us who wears the jerseys for sure. That would be something to remember forever.”
The league’s first two Field of Dreams games — in both 2021 (Chicago White Sox vs. New York Yankees) and 2022 (Chicago Cubs vs. Cincinnati Reds) — were played in Dyersville, Iowa on the same site in which the movie was filmed. That complex is currently under construction, however, and won’t be ready to host a game by summer 2024.
Rickwood Field is one of the two Negro Leagues parks still standing, along with the recently renovated Hinchliffe Stadium in Patterson, N.J. It is currently home to the Miles College baseball team and occasionally hosts the current Minor League incarnation of the Barons — better known as the team on which Michael Jordan made his pro baseball debut. The park has been featured in films like “42” and “Soul of the Game.”
