Mystery Week starts tonight on Marquee Sports Network

A couple weeks ago Al started highlighting retro game threads here on Bleed Cubbie Blue. The idea behind them was simple. While watching classics like the Cubs 2016 postseason run and Kerry Wood’s 20 strikeout game is a great way to pass the time as we all watch way too much TV during the pandemic, we all know how those games end. Part of what makes watching sports great is not knowing how the game will end and the anticipation that builds with each at bat. We’ll have another one here this Thursday afternoon.

It turns out that the programming and marketing staff at Marquee Sports Network had a similar idea and starting tonight they will air two weeks of “Mystery” games. Vice President of Marketing Amy McDevitt, joined Al and me over the weekend to tell us a bit more about these games and how fans can be involved.

These Mystery Week games will be listed in the guide with no identifying information, as you can see below:

RCN & Marquee Sports Network

If you compare the listing for Marquee Sports Network and ESPN-U the difference is immediately apparent — there is no identifying information for Mystery Week Games. McDevitt said that while they’ve gotten a great response to the classic games they’ve been running, “there’s also the group of people who just miss sitting down in front of a game and wondering what’s gonna happen tonight.” She noted that the network received multiple fan emails requesting games where the outcome was unknown, and they loved the idea and decided to run two weeks of mystery games for the fans. An aside, if you’ve ever wondered if people are reading your emails to Marquee Sports Network, consider this evidence that they definitely are being read.

McDevitt continued: “You can’t binge watch a Cubs season like you can binge watch a TV series, you have to tune in. I think that this is all about just bringing back that suspense and you know, putting out games that people don’t clearly remember and giving them some kind of mystery for a couple of weeks.” As a person who is fresh out of shows to binge watch, the idea of 10 mystery Cubs games over the next two weeks is a godsend and I’m sure I’m not alone.

There are also multiple ways to engage with Marquee Sports Network mystery games on social media. Be sure you are following their Instagram and Twitter accounts to view mystery game highlights, GIFs and answer trivia questions about the game and it’s outcome. We’d also love you to share some of those fun moments here on BCB. In classic BCB fashion Al and I thought it would be fun to game thread the next two weeks of mystery games. You all know the drill, about 30 minutes before the start of each game Al will post a game thread with details for how to tune in and expectations for that night’s game. While industrious fans could certainly sleuth out the date and result of the game with a few early clues, we’re going to ask that you not do that in the threads to preserve the mystery for readers who want to be surprised.

The first of two Mystery Weeks will kick off at 8 p.m. CT tonight on Marquee Sports Network with the game thread posting at 7:30 p.m. The rest of this week’s games will air at 7:30 p.m. CT with the game thread posting at 7:00 pm.