The long awaited 2023 London Series, between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals, is finally here. The two Major League Baseball clubs, and bitter archrivals, will square off at the London Stadium, home of West Ham United. It’s another edition of English football meets American baseball.
West Ham just completed a season in which they ended a very long trophy drought. Earlier this month, Jarrod Bowen provided a last-minute match winner for the Hammers, in their 2-1 victory over ACF Fiorentina in the UEFA Europa Conference League final. That ended a 43-year-trophy drought for the club.
You might have heard a thing or two about the Cubs infamous trophy drought. From 1908-2016 (that’s 108 years), they did not win a single World Series. From 1945-2016, they didn’t even win one single pennant. These droughts were basicaly their brand identity as a ballclub, but that has all changed now. After all the Cubs had several postseason appearances in the 2010s, and went to three straight NLCS.
And this weekend won’t be their first appearance on the international stage.
In 2000, they went to Tokyo, Japan to open the season with against the New York Mets. Three years later, they journeyed to the temporary partial home of the then Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals) in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
For the Cardinals “it happened in Monterrery, in old Mexico” (cc Sinatra) when they faced the Cincinnati Reds for two.
The 2023 London Series is part of the MLB World Tour marketing/branding initiative. The goal is to play as many as 24 regular season games and up to 16 exhibition games in Asia, Mexico, Latin America and Europe between now and 2026.
2023 London Series Cubs vs Cardinals FYIs
Sat., June 24
1:10 p.m. ET
LHP Justin Steele (7-2, 2.71 ERA) vs. RHP Adam Wainwright (3-1, 5.56 ERA)
Fox
Sun., June 25
10:10 a.m. ET
RHP Marcus Stroman (9-4, 2.28 ERA) vs. RHP Jack Flaherty (4-5, 4.95 ERA)
ESPN
Enjoy the show of Anglo-American Alliance everyone!
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He’s written for numerous publications, including the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. He regularly appears on NTD News and WGN News Now. Follow the website on Twitter and Instagram.