Major League Baseball has dropped plans to host a game in Grand Teton National Park.
The Trump administration considered a proposal from the premier baseball league to hold a game in the Wyoming beauty spot, prompting the National Park Service’s deputy director to consider suitable locations.
But the move sparked outrage among local leaders, who pushed back by sending letters to MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum.
The letters were sent on Monday, the Washington Post reports, and by Thursday the MLB had backed away from the idea.
“It has become clear the local community does not want us to continue evaluating Grand Teton National Park as a potential site,” Manfred said in a letter of his own.
National Park Service Deputy Director Frank Lands visited the area and looked at three potential sites where a game could be played, the Post reported, citing two people familiar with the matter. One of the sites was reportedly not a pristine area of parkland.
The White House distanced itself from the plan on Monday, saying in a statement to the Post that “This is not a Presidential directive, nor is it being directed by the White House. It’s also not being driven by the Department of Interior,” and adding, “this is not a White House or Administration priority.
“If the MLB wants to go on site visits of national parks, that is their prerogative.”
“We are grateful that Major League Baseball heard the roar of the crowd and rightfully recognized that Grand Teton is already a field of dreams, filled with mountains, forests, wild nature and wildlife that attracts millions of dedicated fans each year,” Allison Michalski, Grand Teton senior program manager at the National Parks Conservation Association, told the Post.
“The bases were loaded with opposition, and this news is a grand slam for Teton County communities and the enduring legacy of Grand Teton National Park.”
The move also drew condemnation from environmental experts.
“It is irreplaceable. There is no other Grand Teton that is home to bears and wolves and bison, elk and pronghorn,” a regional director for advocacy group National Parks Conservation Association Betsy Buffington told the Post.
“So the idea that we would put a baseball stadium in Grand Teton National Park is just — what would the word be? — ludicrous. Crazy. Ridiculous. I mean, I just can’t fathom.”
Trump has already made questionable decisions related to the National Park Service, including reducing select tours, cutting markers that point out historic injustices, and removing almost a quarter of the workforce.
The Daily Beast has reached out to MLB and the White House for comment.
