Photo: KWQC-TV
(Dyersville, IA) -- Dyersville has seen traffic increase considerably in advance of the MLB sanctioned game near the Field of Dreams movie site. The game (tonight/Thursday) between the Chicago White Sox and the New York Yankees is the first-ever MLB sanctioned game in Iowa.
Jessica O'Riley of the Iowa Tourism Office hopes it will be the start of a tradition. She says the value of the national attention about the game has been immeasurable, noting the publicity has elevated Iowa on the national stage, and will likely pay-off in terms of more baseball fans and fans of the movie coming to Dyersville to see the famous movie site. She says that would translate into more spending in the local economy, in hotels, restaurants, and at other nearby attractions. She's hoping MLB will be impressed and other teams will make plans to travel to the site to play a game in the future.
Dyersville has noticed an increase in visitation recently, and hotels within 100 miles of the Field of Dreams site are booked, in advance of the baseball game.