AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall
Tim Anderson arrived in Dyersville, Iowa, having never seen the film Field of Dreams. He left with arguably a better ending than the original.
As Major League Baseball descended on the small Iowa town for the first Field of Dreams Game, it was Anderson who provided the Hollywood ending, hitting a walk-off home run deep into the corn field as the Chicago White Sox defeated the New York Yankees 9-8.
The eighth and final home run of the game was easily the most epic. As the ball landed beyond the right-field fence, fireworks lit up the sky while Anderson celebrated by shaking his hands as he rounded the bases.
After a disastrous start to the ninth inning, Anderson’s celebration was certainly earned.
All-Star closer Liam Hendriks took the mound at the top of the frame looking to protect a 7-4 lead. New York’s Tyler Wade stirred up the drama by singling to right. Strikeouts of DJ LeMahieu and Brett Gardner put the Yankees down to their final out against one of the nastiest pitchers in baseball, but Aaron Judge worked a 2-1 count and deposited his second home run of the night into the farmland to make it 7-6.
A clearly shaken Hendriks then walked Joey Gallo and gave up a go-ahead home run to Giancarlo Stanton before getting out of the inning on Luke Voit strikeout.
Now trailing 8-7, Sox pinch-hitter Danny Mendick opened the bottom of the ninth with a quick groundout before catcher Seby Zavala turned an 0-2 count into a walk. That turned the lineup over to Anderson, who in typical fashion, took a rip at the first pitch of the at-bat.
“The game is never over until it’s over,” an exasperated Anderson told the Fox broadcast once the celebration calmed down on the field.
“I knew what I was looking for and I didn’t miss. Let’s go home.”
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