In the 1989 film “Field of Dreams” Kevin Costner’s character Ray Kinsella, prompted by ominous assurance that “people will come,” builds a baseball field in the middle of nowhere.
Zion, Ill. isn’t exactly the middle of nowhere, but Costner is certainly hoping people will come to the 8,000-capacity minor league baseball stadium he and others are planning to build there.
A Northern League expansion team will call the as-yet-unnamed stadium home. Construction on the stadium is slated to begin this summer with the goal of getting a team on the field for the 2010 season.
According to the Web site LakeCountyBaseball.com, “The team will be
owned and run by the partnership Grand Slam Sports & Entertainment,
LLC of Deerfield, IL. Academy Award winner Kevin Costner is one of the
primary owners of the team, and Rich Ehrenreich, the founder and
long-time owner of the Schaumburg Flyers is the managing partner in the
ownership group.”
The team will play in the independent Northern League, which has teams
in Schaumburg, Joliet, Gary, Ind., Kansas City, Kan., Fargo, ND, and
Winnipeg, Canada.
Season ticket reservations will be available in about a month, according to the Web site.
In addition to “Field of Dreams,” Costner has also starred in the baseball-themed movies “Bull Durham” and “For Love of the Game.”
Any ideas for team names?
