By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Dec 4th, 2023
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3061 Views
Lee Smith 1957 (Cubs 1980-1987) When Big Lee came up with the Cubs in 1980, he was a starting pitcher. They moved him to the closer role after they floundered in 1981 after the trade that sent Bruce Sutter to the Cardinals. Big Lee turned out to be one of the most consistent closers in […]...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Dec 3rd, 2023
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2919 Views
~Damon Berryhill 1963 (Cubs 1987-1991) Berryhill was the primary catcher for the surprising 1989 Cubs team that won their division, the Boys of Zimmer. He shared the position with fellow young catcher Joe Girardi. He was known for his toughness behind the plate and his clutch hitting, but he also pro...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Dec 2nd, 2023
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3164 Views
~Andre Rodgers 1934 (Cubs 1961-1964) Andre was the first player from the Bahamas to play in the big leagues. He was a great cricket player in his homeland who heard about baseball and came to America to give it a shot. It took him a few years to make it, but the talented athlete eventually […]...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Dec 1st, 2023
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3164 Views
~Javier Baez 1992– (Cubs 2014-Present) Baez was the 9th overall pick of the 2011 draft: the last first round pick of the Jim Hendry era. At each level of the minors, Baez was a superstar, but when he joined the Cubs in August 2014, Javy struggled. Despite hitting a game-winning homer in his fir...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Nov 30th, 2023
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3197 Views
~Rich Harden 1981 (Cubs 2008-2009) The Cubs knew they were getting a fragile but talented pitcher from the A’s during their division winning season of 2008, but gambled that he could help. When he got on the mound, he did. Harden had a 5-1 record after being acquired, but he wasn’t availa...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Nov 29th, 2023
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2715 Views
~Howard Johnson 1960 (Cubs 1995) His parents obviously had a sense of humor, because they named their son Howard, the same name as a famous hotel and restaurant chain. His nickname naturally ended up being the same thing as the restaurant’s nickname (HoJo), but he had the last laugh. Howard Joh...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Nov 28th, 2023
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2458 Views
Carlos Villanueva 1983 (Cubs 2013-2014) Carlos was signed as a free agent after pitching seven big league seasons in Milwaukee and Toronto. He was a very valuable pitcher for the Cubs for two seasons, filling every conceivable role. Carlos started 20 games, finished 20 games, won 12, and saved 2. He ...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Nov 27th, 2023
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2731 Views
~Johnny Schmitz 1920 (Cubs 1941-1951) He was nicknamed Bear Tracks because of his lumbering shuffle to the mound. Schmitz was only twenty when he was called up to the majors, and pitched two seasons for the Cubs, but was drafted to serve in World War II in 1942. Bear Tracks was one of the rare [&hell...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Nov 26th, 2023
0 Comments
3602 Views
~Larry Gura 1947 (Cubs 1970-1973, 1985) Gura didn’t pitch too much for the team that drafted him. He appeared in a total of 54 games over four seasons (mostly out of the bullpen). The Cubs traded him for pitcher Mike Paul. Paul had very little left in the tank. Gura, on the other hand, was [&he...
By Rick Kaempfer
In Today's Cub Birthday
Nov 25th, 2023
0 Comments
4978 Views
~Joe DiMaggio 1914 (Offered to the Cubs 1934) He was never a member of the Chicago Cubs, but he could have been. That’s right: The Chicago Cubs passed on Joe DiMaggio. Is there anything that sums up a bad century better than that sentence? The sad part of the story is that it was even […...
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