Cubs fans probably don't feel all that much magic right now... and how could they? The Cubbies have now lost 11 consecutive games after the Marlins completed a series sweep on Sunday night. And that loss, a 4-1 game, probably didn't seem all that bad considering the Cubs had allowed 41 runs in a three-game span earlier that week, one of only a handful of times that had occurred in franchise history.
But I digress. A little injection of magic is just what this team could use, and Monday evening's news could be just that — though it will have to wait until next August. According to Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Chicago, Chicago will face the division rival Cincinnati Reds in the 2022 Field of Dreams Game following the highly successful debut of the Iowa MLB showdown featuring the cross-town White Sox and the Yankees.
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MLB sources confirmed to NBC Chicago that the Reds and Cubs would be the two teams in next year's contest, set to take place on Thursday, August 11, 2022 as the first of a three-game series. After a rest day on Friday, the series would conclude in Cincinnati on Saturday and Sunday. There are reportedly "a few legal details" that still need to be figured out, and the tentative 2022 schedules for both teams currently show August 11 as an off day, though one source said that would eventually change.
After Cubs skipper David Ross accidentally let on that the Cubs would be one of the teams partaking in the 2022 iteration of the game, it was mentioned that the Cardinals were interested and hopeful that they would be the other team selected after they were the victims of a 2020 COVID postponement.
However, if NBC Chicago's most recent report holds true, it looks like the Cards have been left out of the event once again, this time in favor of Cincinnati's offensive powerhouse. As it turns out, the Reds are leading the Cubs 8-0 at the time of this writing, and so it seems like that offensive machine continues to churn out results while Chicago is well on its way to its 12th loss in a row.
Here's to hoping that the Cubs and the Reds both have something to play for in August of 2022 so that the game can be anywhere near as competitive and incredible as Dyersville, Iowa's introduction to Major League Baseball.
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