Friday, August 13 | Sign Up 

Good morning, frents!

Anything good on TV last night?

(Fox Sports)

There was never a sequel for the Field of Dreams movie because how could you write another after that ending?  

Good luck to Major League Baseball figuring out how to stage another game after what we watched on Thursday night. 

While commissioner Rob Manfred pledged to return to Dyersville given the instant rave reviews, it will be near impossible to top the drama of the Sox's 9-8 walkoff winner over the Yankees. 

Tim Anderson's two-run homer off Zack Britton with one out in the ninth sealed the success of the night and took an instant spot among the most memorable homers in franchise history. 

TA7's blast took away a win from the Yankees, who victimized Liam Hendriks and took the lead in the top of the inning with a pair of two-run blasts from Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. 

The two teams combined for eight homers, providing plenty of action after a memorable introduction that started with Kevin Costner walking out of the corn and the two teams following in era-specific uniforms. 

An army of Fox cameras caught the night from every single angle with the cut-from-the-corn ballpark and Iowa landscape looking as good as the original did on film 32 years ago.

Like the NHL's first outing with the Winter Classic in Buffalo in 2008, It honestly couldn't have gone much better for baseball. They had perfect weather, game-ending heroics by a big star and the magic of it being the "first time."

Baseball has to try, but last night won't ever be topped.

A few extra thoughts and items:

• Thank god Anderson took that game back for the Sox and provided an all-time ending. While Hendriks' blown save wouldn't have totally ruined the night, it definitely would've soured the experience a bit (particularly for those Sox fans driving four hours back down I-80 in the middle of the night). I'm still ticked the Hawks couldn't fly the W over the Wings at Wrigley in 2009.
• The regular season can be a slog and if you didn't recognize that before, you should have on Thursday night. Each player looked like he was having a blast before and after the game and I think that's attributable to the fact that this was something different. Fans obviously responded the same way and it's something MLB should take note of as they try to figure out how to keep everyone's attention from April to October.
• The ads behind home plate and the swooshes on the jersey ruined the magic a bit. I get that staging these things cost money but both MLB and the companies should've set some limits and banked some goodwill with "limited commercial interruptions."
• I took a dig at Joe Buck in yesterday's newsletter, but thought he and Smoltz did a great job of balancing the spectacle and the storylines of the two teams. The entire broadcast was fantastic.

• You can't make this up. The White Sox have hit 15 walkoff homers against the Yankees. The first was hit by Shoeless Joe Jackson on July 20, 1919.
• Here's Len Kasper's call of the home run. Best part: Darrin Jackson paying homage to his old partner Ed Farmer with a "Light 'em up!"
• The Fox drone flying through the farmhouse was great.
• Here's a Cubs fan doing a review of the apple pie hot dog on scene. I will be forever sad I didn't get to experience this.

Quote

“It’s definitely dope to play in the middle of a cornfield.” 

— Tim Anderson

(USA Today Sports)

Announcement time!

I'm happy to tell you that Brendan Sugrue will be contributing to Midway Minute during this Bears season. Brendan also writes for BearsWire and will primarily be helping me with Bears coverage this fall.

First up: A look at Saturday's exhibition opener against Miami and what we can expect to see of Justin Fields, who is coming off a great scrimmage against the Dolphins on Thursday.

Brewers 17, Cubs 4: Four-game sweep by Milwaukee, eight straight losses by the Cubs who cut Jake Arrieta before Thursday's game. The Brewers scored 37 runs over the four games.

Next: The Cubs head to Miami to face the 48-67 Marlins. Adbert Alzolay (4-12, 4.71) gets Jesus Luzardo (3-5, 7.36) in the opener. 

Thursday's results
Sox 9, Yankees 8
Brewers 17, Cubs 4

Today
Cubs at Marlins (6:10, Marquee)
Sox off

Saturday
Dolphins at Bears (Noon, Fox)
Cubs at Marlins (5:10, Marquee)
Yankees at Sox (6:10, NBCSCH)

Sunday
Cubs at Marlins (12:10, Marquee)
Yankees at Sox (1:10, NBCSCH)
Seattle at Sky (3, ABC)
Columbus at Fire (5:10, WGN)
Red Stars at North Carolina (5, Paramount+)

1. Imagine thinking it's a good idea to fight Khalil Mack. Sun-Times

2. Can the Bulls get a top-4 seed in the East this year? Sports Illustrated

3. Laz and Powers talked with Hawks season ticketholders and how they feel about the team's off-ice issues. The Athletic

4. Why the Cubs decided it was time to release Jake Arrieta. SI Vault

5. Goose Island announced its 2021 Bourbon County Stout lineup, including a new cola-flavored version. Guys Drinking Beer

Support the Midway Minute/Humble Design service project next Wednesday. Let's get this over $2,000 heading into the final week!

Current level: $1,907 Goal: $3,000