Field of Dreams sold to Wade Boggs, investors group

Wanna have a catch, Dad? Better hurry because you never know what will happen to the original Field of Dreams baseball diamond now that it's been sold to a group of investors that includes Hall of Famer Wade Boggs. The Hollywood Reporter says the property in northern Iowa sold for $3.4 million.

Why Boggs? Well, the former Red Sox star was still playing for Boston when Field of Dreams co-stars Kevin Costner and James Earl Jones "visited" Fenway Park during the movie. ("Ease his pain," "Go the distance..." you remember all the lines.) Aside from that factoid, THR provides very little additional insight into the motivations. (Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were also at Fenway during the filming of the scene, but I guess they kept their wallets shut.)

The plans are to build a youth baseball complex called All-Star Baseball Heaven, featuring 24 fields and 60 clubhouses. That's a far cry from the field that Ray Kinsella builds in his cornfield in the 1989 movie. The actual field is in Dyersville, Iowa, and was opened for visitors to visit and play for free beginning in 1990. If the grass in the movie looks a little too perfect, it's because it was painted green after the original grass failed to bloom as quickly as hoped.

Deadline.com points out that baseball stadiums used in '80s films haven't fared that well lately, so maybe Field of Dreams fans should feel lucky. Among the cathedrals to the sport no longer with us: Milwaukee's County Stadium and Cleveland Municipal Stadium (Major League), Buffalo's War Memorial Stadium (The Natural) and Bush Stadium in Indianapolis (Eight Men Out). Dodger Stadium (The Naked Gun, Better Off Dead) appears safe for now.