Chicago Cubs Confident Wrigley Field Will Be Ready By Home Opener
CHICAGO (CBS) – In 31 days, the Chicago Cubs will host their season home opener.
It is the first time in 108 years fans can call them the defending world champions, but will Wrigley Field's construction allow that to happen?
CBS 2's Jeremy Ross has a construction update.
In order to play baseball, you need two teams, a ball and a field – and with only weeks until the 2017 season home opener, at least one piece is missing.
The work pace around Wrigley Field is picking up. The scene looks like a combination of a construction zone and baseball field.
The intersection of baseball and building, most obvious, when you see supplies and equipment where a field would normally be.
The Chicago Cubs said they are 100 percent confident Wrigley will be ready for the home opener on April 10.
Workers fortify concrete, relocate the bullpens underneath the bleachers and replace some seats.
"The construction is on schedule, and maybe even a little ahead of time," Derek Rettell said.
Rettell will open up Smoke Daddy Barbeque across from Wrigley. It's one of about a half dozen business slated to open there in 2018.
He said the unusually mild winter has helped speed construction for his business and the home opener.
"It's clear Mother Nature is a Cubs fan and wants all these projects to get off the ground, on schedule," Rettell said.
That includes the preparation of the new plaza, the grounds being groomed and the light posts in place.
The Cubs said the green space eventually hosting farmers markets, concerts, movies and fans will be ready in time for the home opener.
The aldermen told CBS 2 that on event days, like for games and concerts, that plaza would be limited to those with a ticket.
Construction around the ballpark will continue through 2018.
