Cubs to Face Blue Jays in 2027 Little League Classic, First Time on a Thursday

The Chicago Cubs will play the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2027 MLB Little League Classic, commissioner Rob Manfred announced, sending a Canadian franchise to the Williamsport showcase for the first time since the event began in 2017. The game is scheduled for Thursday, August 19, 2027, at Historic Bowman Field in Williamsport, Pennsylvania — a scheduling shift from the event's usual Sunday night slot.

According to a report from the Chicago Tribune, the Cubs will serve as the road team and will play two additional games against the Blue Jays that same weekend in Toronto. The Cubs will have the day after the Little League Classic off, per the Tribune's report by Meghan Montemurro. The 2027 edition will be MLB's 10th Little League Classic and the Cubs' second appearance in the event, following their 2019 matchup against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

A Thursday First for a Sunday Tradition

The 2027 Little League Classic will air on ESPN, continuing the network's role in broadcasting the event since its inception. The shift to a Thursday game breaks from the tradition established in 2017, when the showcase debuted as a Sunday night broadcast pairing Major League Baseball with the Little League World Series happening in the same town. The Little League Classic was not played during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, but has continued annually since.

The Cubs previously played in the event in 2019, defeating the Pirates 7-1 at Bowman Field, according to the Tribune. Cubs outfielder Ian Happ, who was part of that 2019 squad, struck out against Clay Holmes in a pinch-hit at-bat during the game but said the experience stuck with him regardless. “The most memorable part was being with the kids and touring everything,” Happ said, according to the Tribune's report. Happ, who was born in Pittsburgh, also called the 2019 event probably the busiest the Cubs had played and said being a Cub involves invitations to many marquee events.

Venue Steeped in History, Access Limited by Design

Bowman Field, which opened in 1926, has an official seating capacity of 2,366 and ranks as the second-oldest active minor league ballpark in the country, behind only Birmingham's Rickwood Field, according to Wikipedia. Because of that limited capacity, tickets for the Little League Classic are never sold to the general public. Seating is restricted primarily to Little League World Series players, coaches, and families, along with local Lycoming County residents chosen through an official MLB ticket lottery, per Little League Baseball.

Getting the century-old ballpark ready for Major League play required substantial investment. Ahead of the inaugural 2017 game, MLB and state grant programs spent more than $4 million to renovate Bowman Field, replacing the entire playing surface, installing new drainage systems, and relocating the bullpens past the outfield wall, according to Ballpark Digest. That public-private funding commitment has continued in the years since, underscoring how much upkeep the small-town stadium needs to keep hosting a big-league event.

Local Economic Stakes Behind the Showcase

The annual game carries real weight for the Williamsport area's economy. The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development has said the Little League Classic supports more than 2,000 local jobs and generates over $2.2 million in economic activity each year, a figure tied to a $750,000 state grant awarded in November 2024 for stadium infrastructure, according to the Williamsport Sun-Gazette. That funding was aimed at preserving the stadium's safety and playability as it continues to host both the Little League World Series and MLB's marquee visit each August.

This year's edition of the event, played Sunday between the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers, centered on Hank Aaron's “Keep Swinging” legacy, with players and Little Leaguers reciting a sportsmanship pledge together before the first pitch, according to MLB.com. Both franchises in that matchup share a connection to the Hall of Famer, a thematic pairing that has become part of the event's identity from year to year.

Cubs' Long Résumé of Showcase Games

The 2027 selection adds to what the Tribune describes as the Cubs' extensive history of participating in events intended to grow the game and showcase different venues. The team defeated the Cincinnati Reds 4-2 in the 2022 Field of Dreams Game in Dyersville, Iowa, and split a two-game set against the St. Louis Cardinals during the 2023 London Series, winning the opener 9-1 before falling 7-5 the next day. The Cubs also opened their 2025 regular season at the Tokyo Series in Japan, dropping both games to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the Tokyo Dome.

Former Mets outfielder Michael Conforto, who played in the 2004 Little League World Series and later appeared in the 2018 Little League Classic with New York, is among just three players to have appeared in the Little League World Series, the NCAA Men's College World Series, and the MLB World Series — a list that also includes Jason Varitek and Ed Vosberg. Conforto represented the Northwest Region with the Redmond North team from Washington and later played for Oregon State in the 2013 college World Series before reaching the 2015 MLB World Series with the Mets. He remembered going to the pool, pin trading, and spending time in the barracks and arcade during his time in Williamsport, and compared his teammates' experience there to Disneyland. Conforto said the 2004 Little League World Series was, up to that point, the ultimate baseball experience of his life, and recalled that ESPN televised the event and treated it like Major League Baseball. Before the 2018 Little League Classic, he was presented with a painting of himself as a Little Leaguer and as a Met.

Other past moments have added to the event's lore, including Cubs pitcher Yu Darvish visiting the Japan Little League team during the 2019 Classic, and former Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo being introduced at that same 2019 game at Bowman Field. With the Blue Jays now added to the mix, the 2027 game will bring a new international dimension to a showcase that has, until now, featured only U.S.-based franchises.