BASEBALL IS BACK - A Letter from Owner Andrew T. Berlin

We’ve all been through a lot over the last thirteen months, but things are looking up. There is light at the end of the tunnel. We’re excited to welcome the return of South Bend Cubs baseball in 2021.

As someone who cares a lot about your experience in this stadium, I want you to know how proud I am to provide a safe, clean, outdoor space for you and your friends. Please enjoy yourselves when visiting Four Winds Field. You deserve to.

Without a 2020 season, we never had a chance to honor our 2019 team for having won the Midwest League Championship. It’s hard to believe that championship game, way back in September of 2019, was the last one we played.

So without baseball, we switched gears to provide as much comfort to our friends in the community as we could.

We provided over 8,000 meals to frontline workers – the heroes of this pandemic. Many of them were from Memorial, Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center and Elkhart General hospitals. And when we weren’t delivering meals directly to the hospitals, we were providing those same meals from this very stadium through a distribution center we established.

The South Bend Cubs also helped raise money for local charities – at a time when they needed it the most. We provided supplies to workers at Senior Living Centers and hospitals. We made public service announcements to support food delivery services, encourage our fellow citizens to adopt social distancing guidelines, and created a hand washing guide as a way to stay safe.

Even though the South Bend Cubs didn’t play ball last year, there were other wonderful things happening in this stadium. Four Winds Field hosted South Bend Schools’ graduation ceremonies, movie nights, travel baseball tournaments, socially distanced events at the Tiki Hut, and Chicago Cubs baseball watch parties.

This region is our home too! Like so many of you over the past year, we were determined to do whatever we could to help our friends and neighbors.

The 2019 season may be ancient history now. But let’s face it, winning the championship game was a tremendous lift. We simply couldn’t have done it without the support that you and all the other fans give us in this ballpark. We’re grateful and I hope you know it.

To show my gratitude to the players and staff, I had a Championship ring designed for every player, coach, front office staff and many of our gameday staff, over 300 rings total. You’ll know when you see it, because it’s the largest ring in the history of Minor League Baseball.

As we look toward the 2021 season, a new era of baseball begins in South Bend. The South Bend Cubs have been elevated to the High-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs and welcome an exciting new manager. His name is Michael Ryan.

Michael is something of a star himself. As a manager in the Pittsburgh Pirates system, he led his team to be Champions of the league on three separate occasions.

This is going to be a great year for South Bend Cubs Baseball. You’re going to love the quality of play on the field, as much as the experience with your friends, here in the stadium.

Am I optimistic? You bet I am. Baseball’s back. The world’s not coming to an end. It’s not all gloom and doom – not anymore.

Sure, we still need to be careful. The pandemic isn’t over. But there’s life… at the end of the tunnel. And it’s here in this ballpark for all to see.

So, when I hear someone say that baseball’s just a game, I want to bring them to South Bend – a place where children chase bubbles and hug furry mascots. Here, buddies talk sports for hours over a beer at the Tiki Hut. Here, dads still put their arms around mom’s shoulder. Here, the only thing you hear more often than the crack of a bat, is laughter from friends and neighbors having the time of their lives.

Baseball’s more than a game. This is important stuff and South Bend is proof. This is where work meets play, neighbors meet neighbors, and families make memories that last generations.

Thank goodness it’s back. We’ve missed all the smiles and the laughter. We’ve missed the hot dogs and even the smell of fresh cut grass.

But now it’s back. It’s more than a game. It’s the time of our lives. Welcome back to Four Winds Field. Now, let’s play ball!

Andrew Berlin

AndrewBerlin.com BerlinPackaging.com – Chairman / CEO, Retired SouthBendCubs.com – Chairman and Owner ChicagoCubs.com – Partner