MLB Chooses 2027 All-Star Site That Hasn't Hosted Since 1990

At long last, we have a plan for the 2027 All-Star Game for Major League Baseball.

It's fitting that on the same week that one of the all-time greats in the Chicago Cubs organization passed away, Chicago gets rewarded with a big-time event on the calendar.

Ryne Sandberg passed away at age 65 on Monday, and was honored at Wrigley Field this week.

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Here's a few photos of the tributes paid to the Hall of Famer:

Getty Images

The City of Chicago was rewarded on Friday with the news that Major League Baseball has chosen iconic Wrigley Field as the host venue for the 2027 All-Star Game. Here are the details from ESPN.com:

The Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field will host the 2027 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, commissioner Rob Manfred announced Friday.

The game will be played July 13, 2027.

"The hard work put in to transform all of Wrigleyville into an outstanding destination deserves to be celebrated and shared on a national stage," Manfred said in a statement. "We look forward to bringing the Midsummer Classic back to historic Wrigley Field and working alongside the Cubs, city and state officials, and the local organizing group to bring an extraordinary experience to the baseball fans of Chicago."

Wrigley Field will host the All-Star Game for the fourth time. The American League won the previous meetings in 1947, 1962 and 1990.

The 1990 All-Star Game was known for a historically low offensive output. The National League was held to two hits, the fewest for an All-Star team in history. The eight-man Home Run Derby field combined to hit five home runs, with Ryne Sandberg winning the contest with three homers.

The Cubs first approached MLB about hosting an All-Star Game eight years ago. But for a variety of reasons, including competition from other cities and safety concerns with the ballpark in a bustling neighborhood, they weren't awarded one until now. Chicago cleared a big hurdle in June, when the city passed an ordinance allowing sidewalks along Addison Street to be widened and removable bollards to be installed around the ballpark.

"I think we're probably overdue in terms of being at Wrigley," Manfred said. "The Ricketts family, city of Chicago and state of Illinois made a tremendous investment not just in the ballpark but the area around it. I think it'll be a fantastic venue for our All-Star celebration."

Wrigley Field is set to join Cleveland's Municipal Stadium and the old Yankee Stadium as the only ballparks to host four All-Star Games. The city of Chicago will host the event for the eighth time, second only to New York with nine.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, a Cubs fan, attended Friday's announcement and called Wrigley Field "the perfect place to host the All-Star Game."

"For over 100 years, this has been the beating heart of the baseball world and a shining emblem of our nation's favorite pastime," he said. "There's no place like it."

Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts lived in the neighborhood the last time the Cubs hosted the All-Star Game. But he wasn't able to attend.

"I didn't have dough," he said.

Source: ESPN.com