DYERSVILLE, Iowa — Drew Smyly did not expect to be on the mound Thursday night for the Field of Dreams game.
The Chicago Cubs left-hander wasn’t lined up to start Major League Baseball’s second game at the site of the classic 1989 movie until last week, when a rainout in St. Louis pushed back Smyly’s start by one day.
Smyly typically tries to arrive at the ballpark as late as possible so he doesn’t have too much time to let his mind wander. He prefers to review the game plan, get loose and go pitch. An abnormal game day schedule Thursday didn’t faze the veteran, however. The Cubs departed Wrigley Field at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, flew to Dubuque, Iowa, and then bused the remaining 25 miles to Dyersville. Smyly joined his teammates during their pregame walk through the cornfields to the 1989 movie set’s iconic field, taking it all in.
