For those old enough to remember, there was a popular journalist by the name of George Plimpton who, among many other things, was an avid sports fan. In fact, in 1963 he tried out for the Detroit Lions and became what they affectionately called their “last string quarterback.” Plimpton’s whole purpose for putting himself through the painful rigors of NFL training camp was to show how an average off-the-street guy would fair as a professional football player. Although the then 36-year-old Plimpton made the team (so to speak), NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle refused to allow him to play under any circumstance – not even in a lopsided pre-season game against the Cleveland Browns. In 1966 Plimpton detailed his experience in a bestselling book entitled Paper Lion – from which a major motion picture was later made, with Alan Alda playing the role of the late writer.

(Image courtesy of Lyons Press)

Fast forward to March 12, 2015.

Later today, 47-year-old actor/comedian Will Ferrell, an avid baseball fan, will pull a George Plimpton when he dons a Dodger uniform and, at some point, will enter the game. Ferrell is doing so for an upcoming episode of Funny or Die, an Emmy-winning HBO series created by Ferrell.

Ferrell will be participating in his dream-come-true role as production begins for the HBO special – in partnership with Major League Baseball – which will air exclusively on HBO later this year.

The popular actor/comedian will actually play in five Cactus League games today, being flown by helicopter to five different Cactus League ballparks, concluding at Peoria Stadium where the Dodgers will take on the Padres in an evening affair.

Ferrell’s project is not merely a publicity stunt but rather an awareness fight against cancer in which he will be honoring the historic feat accomplished by former major leaguer Bert Campaneris who five decades ago played every position on the field for 10 different teams in the same day.

“The Dodgers are excited to join MLB in this creative project that involves one of the Dodgers most beloved fans, Will Ferrell,” said Dodgers Chief Marketing Officer Lon Rosen. “We look forward to welcoming Will to Dodger Spring Training and, most importantly, helping him support Cancer for College and Stand Up to Cancer.”

Ferrell will play for 10 different MLB teams on Thursday, including the Dodgers and Padres.
(Photo credit – Harry How)

Here is a list of the games that Ferrell is scheduled to play in:

March 12 (all times Pacific; subject to change)

12:05 p.m. – Seattle Mariners at Oakland Athletics (HoHoKam Stadium)

1:10 p.m. – Chicago Cubs at Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (Tempe Diablo Stadium)

2:10 p.m. – Cincinnati Reds at Arizona Diamondbacks (Salt River Fields at Talking Stick)

4:05 p.m. – San Francisco Giants at Chicago White Sox (ss) (Camelback Ranch)

6:15 p.m. – Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres (Peoria Stadium)

Ferrell’s goal is to honor “Campy” Campaneris while also helping organizations dedicated to fighting cancer, including Cancer for College.  Formed in 1993, Cancer for College is a charity that helps individuals adversely affected by cancer to realize their dream of a college education.

An important part of the fund-raising efforts will be game-used memorabilia from Ferrell’s journey across the five ballparks to be auctioned online later in the year on MLB.com with proceeds being donated to Cancer for College as well as Stand Up To Cancer, a groundbreaking initiative created to accelerate innovative cancer research.  MLB is the founding donor of Stand Up To Cancer.

Ferrell’s historic day will be chronicled in the exclusive HBO special which will air later this year and also feature MLB players, managers, coaches, executives and fans.  Fans can follow along live and on-demand throughout the day across MLB Network, MLB.com, dodgers.com and the official accounts on social media platforms.

On Sept. 8, 1965, Campaneris, in only his second Major League season, went 0-for-3 playing all nine positions for the Kansas City Athletics in a game against the California Angels. Campaneris is expected to be there with Ferrell as he begins his journey tomorrow.

The Dodgers agreed to move the start time for tomorrow’s game against the San Diego Padres to 6:15 p.m. This adjustment from the original 1:05 p.m. time slot was to accommodate a request by Major League Baseball as part of the collaboration with HBO and Funny Or Die to film the project.

MLB Network will televise the Dodgers at Padres Spring Training game with the pre-game starting at 6:00 p.m. PT, and the live game call by MLB Network’s Matt Vasgersian, SportsNet LA’s Rick Monday and Alanna Rizzo, and Padres announcer Mark Grant. The game will be produced by MLB Network and air live on SportsNet LA.

(The Dodgers PR Department contributed to this article)