Swing-and-a-miss: MLB cancels plan to hold baseball game in national park after backlash | Wyoming

Major League Baseball (MLB) officials are no longer considering holding a game in a national park, according to a letter Commissioner Robert Manfred sent Thursday to officials in Teton County, Wyoming, in what could be the league’s biggest failure on the field.

On September 26, the Washington Post reported that MLB had contacted the White House about hosting a one-day game at Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. Teton County describes itself as a “year-round resort community” and is located in the Jackson Hole Valley. It is also a habitat for grizzly bears, ospreys, bison and more.

News of MLB’s outreach to the federal government quickly raised concerns about the impact that building a field and infrastructure to accommodate spectators could have on the natural landscape and habitat for many of the wildlife that inhabit the 310,000-acre (125,500-hectare) park.

In the letter, Manfred noted that MLB had held games at places like the Fort Bragg military base in North Carolina and the nation’s oldest Negro Leagues stadium in Birmingham, Alabama. He added that MLB staff had done due diligence to see if a game at Grand Teton was possible and to assess the potential impact on the environment.

“Since the story was reported, it has become clear that the local community does not want us to maintain Grand Teton National Park as a potential site,” Manfred wrote.

Outrage over a possible MLB game comes as U.S. national parks struggle with funding cuts, understaffing and continued overcrowding.

A Teton County commissioner, Luther Propst, who described potential gambling as an “incomprehensible and deeply unwelcome notion,” celebrated MLB’s decision in a Facebook post.

“Ever since I got a call from the Washington Post about MLB recognizing a ballfield in Grand Teton National Park, I was hoping this idea would die a quick death — and today, it did!” he wrote. “This is what can happen when we stand together, and I’m proud to have played my part.”

In a statement to the Guardian, a White House spokesperson said that MLB had been approached with the possibility of hosting the game, but that the National Park Service had not granted any permission to do so and that the game did not constitute a directive from the White House.

Neither MLB nor the National Park Service immediately responded to the Guardian’s request for comment.