Field of Dreams **irrelevant ramblings**

**ballyhoohoo** · 08-16-2021, 07:43 AM

After watching the CWS and NYY it got me excited to watch the movie.

Having gone back and watched "Field of Dreams" you have to assume Ray is a terrible farmer. He did sacrifice the ability to farm some of his tillable land, yes. But with the average small family farm being 250 acres of tillable land, and a baseball field being about 2.7 acres, that means he gave up around 1% of land for his field. The average operating profit of a small family farm is 11%. So, Ray would have seen a dip to maybe 9% profit, assuming his cost for the field.

Even if Ray was average at farming, this field would not have bankrupted him in one season. Also, he drives an old VW van, has older equipment, so the overhead is not what it is with an average farmer who has newer equipment and a pickup....

Having grown up on a working farm, I really starting wondering how Ray was going under. I know it is chocked up to Hollywood having no idea

drudy23 · 08-16-2021, 10:03 AM

And his wife was annoying.

**nuts4xu** · 08-16-2021, 10:05 AM

I always thought it was kinda dumb that Shoeless Joe's ghost was wandering around a cornfield in Iowa. He grew up in South Carolina, played in the minors in South Carolina, played MLB in Cleveland, Chicago, and Philadelphia...yet the ghost was hanging around in a cornfield in Iowa?

I call bullshit on this movie!!

**paulxu** · 08-16-2021, 10:11 AM

Wait...I grew up in the South, went to school, etc., and have been drinking all over the world.

My ghost will probably be haunting Dana's. Is that bad?

**bobbiemcgee** · 08-16-2021, 11:06 AM

Not in my top 5 (for entertainment value): The Natural, Bull Durham, Sandlot, Moneyball and Major League.

MHettel · 08-16-2021, 11:51 AM

Originally Posted by ballyhoohoo

After watching the CWS and NYY it got me excited to watch the movie.

Having gone back and watched "Field of Dreams" you have to assume Ray is a terrible farmer. He did sacrifice the ability to farm some of his tillable land, yes. But with the average small family farm being 250 acres of tillable land, and a baseball field being about 2.7 acres, that means he gave up around 1% of land for his field. The average operating profit of a small family farm is 11%. So, Ray would have seen a dip to maybe 9% profit, assuming his cost for the field.

Even if Ray was average at farming, this field would not have bankrupted him in one season. Also, he drives an old VW van, has older equipment, so the overhead is not what it is with an average farmer who has newer equipment and a pickup....

Having grown up on a working farm, I really starting wondering how Ray was going under. I know it is chocked up to Hollywood having no idea

You would have a good career as an economist back in say....1915 or so.

**xu82** · 08-16-2021, 11:55 AM

Originally Posted by ballyhoohoo

After watching the CWS and NYY it got me excited to watch the movie.

Having gone back and watched "Field of Dreams" you have to assume Ray is a terrible farmer. He did sacrifice the ability to farm some of his tillable land, yes. But with the average small family farm being 250 acres of tillable land, and a baseball field being about 2.7 acres, that means he gave up around 1% of land for his field. The average operating profit of a small family farm is 11%. So, Ray would have seen a dip to maybe 9% profit, assuming his cost for the field.

Even if Ray was average at farming, this field would not have bankrupted him in one season. Also, he drives an old VW van, has older equipment, so the overhead is not what it is with an average farmer who has newer equipment and a pickup....

Having grown up on a working farm, I really starting wondering how Ray was going under. I know it is chocked up to Hollywood having no idea

You watched that movie, and THIS is what has you wondering? :-)

**ballyhoohoo** · 08-16-2021, 12:31 PM

Originally Posted by MHettel

You would have a good career as an economist back in say....1915 or so.

Just my very simple take on this. As I have my full time procurement career, teaching as an adjunct and finishing my dissertation I did not have time to do a full blown analysis. Yes, I am take an extremely rudimentary approach to this. Just going off of the knowledge I have when it comes to a farmers life, Ray going under based on losing 1% of production does not make sense.

MHettel · 08-16-2021, 12:38 PM

Originally Posted by ballyhoohoo

Just my very simple take on this. As I have my full time procurement career, teaching as an adjunct and finishing my dissertation I did not have time to do a full blown analysis. Yes, I am take an extremely rudimentary approach to this. Just going off of the knowledge I have when it comes to a farmers life, Ray going under based on losing 1% of production does not make sense.

The math is a little suspect when it comes to the profit dropping from 11% to 9%. Wouldn't his profit drop 1%? not 1 percentage point, but 1% of 11%, which would be .0011. So essentially nothing?

**ballyhoohoo** · 08-16-2021, 12:48 PM

Originally Posted by MHettel

The math is a little suspect when it comes to the profit dropping from 11% to 9%. Wouldn't his profit drop 1%? not 1 percentage point, but 1% of 11%, which would be .0011. So essentially nothing?

In theory it drops next to nothing, assuming the revenue per acre (of 2020). It will not let me upload a screen shot

Assuming 11% profit holds with a 1% reduction in production

Pre-field:
250 acres of tillable land @ $790/acre revenue = $197,500 or 21,725 in profit

With Field

247.5 acres of tillable land @ $790/acre revenue = $195,367 or 21,490 in profit

Ray loses $234.63 in profit. Assuming that all mortgage is included in operating cost (how my family does it) the adding of the field would not sink him, let alone in one season.

Assuming profitability drops by 1%

247.5 acres of tillable land @ $790/acre revenue = $195,367 or 19,536 in profit

Ray loses $2,188 in profit, sizeable, and maybe enough to put them at risk with the savings depleted to build the field. However, most families who only farm a small plot (such as you are lead to believe is the case here) also maintain non farm job. My grandfather drove a school bus and tractor trailer while farming. My dad was a Tool and Die builder, etc. Ray or his wife would work outside the house.

There is the question of overhead, the biggest part is of course the farm, there is some equipment, but from the looks of the equipment Ray has been frugal.

For example, his primary tractor is a John Deere, produced between 76-82, MSRP of $7,850 (probably $150 a month financed new. It is only 57 HP, so Ray is pulling at best a six road planter for corn, which means a six row harvester. Lets say a mid 70's John Deere 4400, this would have cost maybe 20k (buying used in the early to mid 80s.