Twins vs. Phillies Field of Dreams Preview: Bradley vs. Nola in Iowa

August 13, 2026 - Dyersville, Iowa - Major League Baseball is back in a cornfield for the first time since 2022, and the Minnesota Twins are the home club. The Philadelphia Phillies fly in from St. Louis for the third Field of Dreams Game. Taj Bradley faces Aaron Nola at 7:30 p.m. ET, exclusive to Netflix, with coverage starting at 6:30.

Both teams are still in a wild-card fight. That is why this night is more than a movie set. Philadelphia came in at 64-58, second in the NL East. Minnesota came in at 60-62, still in the AL Central mix after taking a series from Baltimore earlier in the week.

*Update, August 14: Philadelphia won 7-1. Full recap.*

A regular-season game that does not look like one

This is the third edition of the event, after 2021 and 2022, and a three-year pause for site work. The park sits a few hundred feet from the original movie field. The Twins host. After Friday's travel day, the same clubs finish the set at Target Field on Saturday and Sunday.

The pageantry is the point before first pitch. More than 25 Hall of Famers are scheduled to walk out of the corn, the largest gathering of living Hall members at one game since the 2008 All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, and Scott Rolen are expected for Philadelphia. Joe Mauer, Bert Blyleven, and Paul Molitor are expected for Minnesota. Jim Thome and Jim Kaat, who played for both franchises, are on the list too.

Country singer Alana Springsteen is set to sing the anthem. Kevin Costner, who starred in the 1989 film, is part of the night's presentation.

Hard thrower, crafty veteran

The mound contrast is clean. Nola is the offspeed veteran trying to look like himself again. Bradley is the high-90s right-hander Minnesota got from Tampa Bay a year ago, mixing a cutter and splitter when the fastball is playing.

Bradley has been the better of the two this season heading into Iowa: 9-4, 3.76 ERA, 148 strikeouts in 131 2/3 innings. Nola entered 3-9 with a 5.47 ERA, though he still had 129 strikeouts. He left his last start with a right knee contusion after a 104.8 mph comebacker, then said he was good to go after his usual between-starts work.

If you trade starting pitching on AthX, this is the kind of night where the baseball story and the marketplace can diverge. AthX Engine (our projection and scoring system) grades what happens on the field. Price is what traders will pay tomorrow. They are related. They are not the same number.

Buxton comes off the IL for this one

Byron Buxton is the Twins story that is not about corn. Minnesota activated him from the 10-day injured list Thursday after a right hip impingement that cost him 14 games, his second IL stint this season with the same hip. He missed the All-Star Game on the first stay. He is the 27th man for this game, with a corresponding move still needed when the series resumes Saturday.

Manager Derek Shelton said Buxton is back in center field, not limited to DH. In 82 games he has hit .263 with 25 home runs. For a club 3.5 games behind the White Sox in the AL Central and still hanging around the wild-card line, that is not a ceremonial activation. It is a lineup upgrade they have been waiting on.

1961 whites, 1939-41 grays

Nike and New Era built throwbacks with the league. Minnesota is in the original 1961 home look from the franchise's first season in the Twin Cities. Philadelphia is in gray jerseys based on 1939 to 1941.

Then they play. Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper sit in the middle of a Phillies order that has been hunting October for years. Minnesota counters with Buxton, Luke Keaschall, and a rotation piece in Bradley that has been one of the better stories in the AL Central.

Friday off, then Target Field

Saturday: Jesús Luzardo for Philadelphia against Connor Prielipp for Minnesota, per the clubs' announced plans after Thursday. Sunday closes the three-game set in Minneapolis.

Track Bradley, Nola, Buxton, and both clubs on the marketplace. The Field of Dreams Game is one night. The standings still have six weeks of ordinary baseball left.

*Sources: MLB.com Field of Dreams preview, MLB.com Phillies preview, NBC Sports how to watch, USA Today, MLB.com on Buxton, ESPN on Buxton, Des Moines Register on the anthem. Information only; not financial advice.*