Chicago Cubs hoping for MLB All-Star Game at Wrigley Field in 2020

Could the Chicago Cubs be hosting the MLB All-Star Game at historic Wrigley Field in 2020?

The world champion Chicago Cubs (which is still kind of a strange thing to say) are holding their annual Cubs Convention in downtown Chicago this weekend. While there’s still plenty of celebrating happening on the North Side, there’s also plenty of looking towards the future.

After winning their first title in 108 years, that future may include more World Series championships. It could also include something else that hasn’t happened for the Cubs in quite a while, and that’s hosting the Major League Baseball All-Star Game at Wrigley Field.

The topic of the Cubs hosting an All-Star Game seems to come up annually at the convention and this year was no different. But given the massive $600 million renovation project that continues to happen in and around the historic ballpark, the chances of Wrigley Field hosting the Midsummer Classic for the first time since 1990 seem better than ever. The Cubs’ President of Business Operations, Crane Kenney, sounded very optimistic on the matter on Saturday and is targeting the summer of 2020, the year the renovations are expected to be completed.

"‘‘The city wants it; we want it. But we’ve got to convince Manfred that we’ve earned it. It’s a little bit of politics. He has a very open mind to Wrigley getting the All-Star Game at some point, and we’re working very closely with the city.’’"

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has gotten away from alternating the game between American League and National League venues, evidenced by the fact that games in Miami in 2017 and Washington, D.C. in 2018 will make four straight games in NL ballparks after games in Cincinnati and San Diego the past two seasons. The location for the 2019 All-Star Game has not yet been finalized.

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There are still some hurdles for the Cubs and the Ricketts family to jump through to make this happen, including some security concerns and the fact that they are using private financing for the Wrigleyville project, but the prospect of the game’s best players coming together at Wrigley Field for a few days in the summer of 2020 looks promising.