Father’s Day

Have there been any father/son teams that have both played for the Cubs? Yes there were. Here are five of their EVERY CUB EVER profiles on this Father’s Day…

~Randy Hundley 1942 (Cubs 1966-1973, 1976-1977)
Randy was a good ol’ boy from Martinsville, Virginia who talked with a Southern accent, and also had a fierce competitiveness. So naturally, his teammates called him Rebel. During his stellar Cubs career he was an All-Star and Gold-Glove winner (in an era that Johnny Bench also played in the NL), and in 1968 set a record that will probably never be broken. He caught 160 games for the Cubs that year–an astonishing achievement. Unfortunately, he was never really the same after that year. The Cubs traded him to the Twins in 1974 (for George Mitterwald), and he played one season for both the Twins and the Padres before ending his career back in Chicago right where it began. (His son Todd also later caught for the Cubs.) After his playing career was over Randy created the first Cubs fantasy camp, a program that still runs to this day. (Photo: Topps 1967 Baseball Card)

~Todd Hundley 1969 (Cubs 2001-2002)
This seemed like a no-brainer free agent signing. The slugging son of Cubs icon Randy Hundley, returning to the ballpark of his youth to relive the glories of his father. Well, it didn’t quite turn out that way. His time with the Cubs was an unhappy one for both player and team. He was booed mercilessly by Cubs fans because he hit only .187 in his first year with the team, and .211 the following year. In 2001 he struck out 89 times in only 246 at bats. Hundley was plagued with injuries too. But, he did have one shining moment in a Cubs uniform when he homered to beat the hated crosstown White Sox.

~Marty Keough 1934 (Cubs 1966)
Marty is the patriarch of a baseball family–his little brother Joe and his son Matt both also played big league baseball. Marty had an eleven year career as a big league outfielder, even though he didn’t get many chances to crack the starting lineup. He played for the Red Sox, Senators, Indians, Reds and Braves before finishing his career with the Cubs. He may not have been a star, but he played alongside a who’s who of his era: HOFers Ted Williams (Red Sox), Frank Robinson (Reds), Tony Perez (Reds), Hank Aaron (Braves), Phil Niekro (Braves), Ernie Banks (Cubs), Ron Santo (Cubs), Billy Williams (Cubs), and Fergie Jenkins (Cubs). He remained in the game after his playing career ended, working as a scout for the Padres, Dodgers, and the Cardinals.

~Matt Keough 1955 (Cubs 1986)
Matt’s father Marty played for the Cubs when Matt was 11 years old. Matt got off to a good start in his own big league career. He was an all-star in second year, but he soon developed arm problems. After that, Keough managed to hang on in the big leagues for another six years despite having very little success. One of those years (1986) was with the Cubs. He was 2-2 with a 4.97 ERA when the Cubs released him in June.

~Casey Coleman 1987 (2010-2012)
The son of former big league pitcher Joe Coleman (who also pitched briefly for the Cubs in 1976) and grandson of former big league pitcher Joe Coleman (an all-star with the Athletics in the 40s), Casey was a starting pitcher for the Cubs for several seasons. He mostly bounced between Iowa and the Cubs, serving as a sixth starter when needed or filling in for injured members of the starting rotation. He won 7 games over three seasons.

~Joe Coleman 1947 (Cubs 1976)
He pitched in the big leagues for 15 seasons and won 142 games, but only 2 of those came for the Cubs. His father (also named Joe) pitched ten years in the big leagues too, and his son Casey made it to the show as well (with the Cubs).

~Gary Matthews 1950 (Cubs 1984-1987)
Gary Matthews earned the nickname Sarge for his dugout leadership, take-charge attitude and competitive playing. He embraced the name, and beginning early in the ’84 season, he would salute the legions of LF bleacher fans who would cheer his every appearance in the outfield. In August of that year, he arranged for caps with “sergeant stripes” and his name to be distributed to all bleacher fans. He was one of the most important players on the 1984 Cubs team that came within a few outs of the World Series. Sarge’s on-base percentage was over .400, he hit 14 homers and stole 17 bases, and though he wasn’t the fielder he was earlier in his career (with the Giants and Phillies), he played with toughness and grit. He played several seasons for the Cubs in the 1980s, but really only had one more good year (1986). He was getting up in age by that time. He later coached for the Cubs, and his son Gary Matthews Jr. began his major league career with the Cubs too. (Photo: Topps 1987 Baseball Card)

How about some foreshadowing?

~Gary Matthews Jr. 1974 (Cubs 2000-2001)
Gary’s dad was the reigning National League Rookie of the Year when Gary Jr. was born in 1974. He followed in his father’s footsteps by becoming a big league ballplayer (and a Cub–just like his dad). His time in Chicago wasn’t quite as sucessful as his father’s. He got a fair amount of playing time with the Cubs, but had trouble hitting over .200. The Cubs released him in August of 2001. Turns out, he had a little more left in the tank. He played in the big leagues for the next ten seasons, including an all-star season with the Angels in 2006. His legacy, however, was tarnished by being mentioned in George Mitchell’s report about steroids.

~Chris Speier 1950 (Cubs 1985-1986)
Long before he was arrested for DUI as a coach for the 2006 Cubs, Chris Speier was a very respectable backup infielder for the 1985 and 1986 Cubs. He backed up Sandberg at second, Dunston at shortstop, and Ron Cey at third, and in 1986 hit .284 for the year, the best he ever hit in a season during his 19-year major league career. He was a three-time all-star shortstop early in his career with the San Francisco Giants.

~Justin Speier 1973 (Cubs 1998)
Chris Speier’s son was drafted by the Cubs and made his big league debut for them just a few years later. The righthanded reliever was included in the trade package that brought Felix Heredia to the Cubs in July of 1998. Heredia was a bust with the Cubs, but Speier went on to make more 600 big league relief appearances for the Marlins, Braves, Indians, Rockies, Blue Jays and Angels over a stellar 12-year career.