Yankees latest roster move confirms monumental Cubs' homecoming

The Chicago Cubs will play the New York Yankees in a three-game set at Wrigley Field this weekend in a series that may finally bring closure to the departures of the Cubs' core that won the World Series in 2016.

The series against the Yankees this weekend will serve as the Wrigley Field homecoming for Anthony Rizzo. While the Cubs have faced Rizzo with the Yankees since the 2021 trade that saw the former Cubs' fan favorite dealt to New York, each of the series has been in New York. This weekend's series will mark Rizzo's first series at Wrigley Field since leaving the Cubs in 2021.

Injuries have derailed Rizzo's 2024 season, who spent 11 weeks on the IL with a fractured arm before being activated on Sunday by the Yankees. In 295 plate appearances this season, Rizzo is slashing .228/.292/.347 with 8 home runs and 82 wRC+.

Of course, in 2023, Rizzo was limited to 99 games due to concussion-like symptoms after a collision with San Diego Padres' outfielder Fernando Tatis Jr.

Anthony Rizzo's Wrigley Field return will close the book on the 2016 World Series.

In his return to the Yankees' lineup on Sunday, against a familiar foe in the St. Louis Cardinals, Rizzo collected 2 hits in his 4 plate appearances while also driving in a run.

In the years since the 2021 tear-down of the 2016 core, Kyle Schwarber, Kris Bryant, and Javier Baez have all made their returns to Wrigley Field. Each player received tributes prior to their first plate appearance at Wrigley Field since being dealt and it goes without saying that Rizzo will get the same treatment on Friday. Beyond that, Rizzo's return to Wrigley Field will officially turn the page for the Cubs from the team that won the World Series in 2016. The team will always be remembered, but we are inching closer to being 10 years away from that fateful season; it's time for a new era.