20 Greatest Chicago Cubs

20

Johnny Evers

Despite his size, Evers was a good athlete and an even smarter ballplayer. Evers had a baseball lineage: his father and several uncles were ballplayers in the 19th century. He was quick and had an accurate throwing arm, which was strong enough for shortstop, which is where he played his first big league game. Three days later, 20-year old Evers played second and 21-year old Joe Tinker played short together for the first time. They learned to play as rookies for the Cubs. They eventually came to anticipate where the other man would be, how hard he would toss a relay throw, what his footwork was like. They played 11 seasons together, though they were unfriendly with each other off the field. They were catalysts on four pennant-winning Chicago teams, including the 1906 squad that won 116 games.

19

Hippo Vaughn

18

Billy Herman

Herman was an exceptional ballplayer with no glaring weaknesses, often overshadowed by colorful teammates. He was a ten-time All-Star and received MVP votes in seven separate seasons.

17

Carlos Zambrano

16

Pete Alexander

“I always thought that Alex was a changed man after the World War. Before he went to France, he was more or less careful about his drinking, but when he was demobilized he would drink anything and at any time.” — Bill Killefer, Alexander’s longtime catcher

15

Mark Grace

14

Joe Tinker

13

Frank Chance

12

Clark Griffith

11

Mordecai Brown

Brown actually had four fingers on his hand, if you count his thumb, but they called him “Three Finger” because that mangled appendage was so strange. It took a while for his pitching brilliance to be noticed because, well it was the 1890s and there was no television, no internet. Hell, there was barely a telephone. Mordecai was 24 in 1901 when fans in Terre Haute demanded their local team pay enough money to keep him on the roster. He was 25 the following year when he won 27 games for Omaha. Even though Nebraska was wilderness, his feats drew attention and St. Louis pointed him to the mound for his first National League start in 1902. Brown was incapable of throwing a baseball straight. His injured hand forced him to grip the ball in an unusual way, and when he threw it, the baseball seemed to “hop” over the swing of opposing batters. He also had a phenomenal curve, a pitch that dropped from “ten o’clock to four o’clock” and caused right-handed batters to frequently jump out of the way before watching the ball settle into the strike zone.

10

Rick Reuschel

They called him “Big Daddy,” because he was built like John Candy, but “The Round Man of the Mound” was an effective pitcher for a long time. He didn’t see his name next to the “W” in the box score enough, because he pitched 19 seasons and was on a losing team 13 times. He spent a dozen seasons in tiny Wrigley Field, but managed to keep the ball in the park, surrendering 25 percent fewer home runs than league average.

9

Gabby Hartnett

Hartnett was very strong but he could spring quickly from behind the dish. He was one of the best catchers of all-time at throwing out baserunners. He reportedly got his strong arm from his father, who played amateur ball. When Johnny Bench won his second MVP Award in 1972, he was the toast of baseball, and he reminded one observer of another great catcher. “Bench throws the baseball like Hartnett,” said Houston manager Leo Durocher.

8

Fergie Jenkins

7

Stan Hack

6

Sammy Sosa

In my mind, Sosa is the worst example of what steroids did to the game of baseball. Prior to drinking the McGwire Milk Shakes, Sosa was another corner outfielder with power: maybe 25-30 homer power in a good year, with lots of strikeouts and a .250 average. After he started his con game, Sammy morphed into The Great Sambino. From 1998 to 2002, Sosa had a .649 slugging percentage. Prior to that, in baseball history, only legendary players had ever averaged a .600 slugging percentage. Sosa and McGwire made a mockery of that, and Barry Bonds joined them at the trough.

5

Billy Williams

— Johnny Evers

4

Ernie Banks

Banks became a superstar in his third year when he hit 44 home runs. He hit 40 homers four more times before he was 30, and he won two MVP awards.

3

Ryne Sandberg

2

Ron Santo

Santo is the first player we know of who played regularly in the major leagues with Type 1 diabetes. When he signed a professional contract his doctor didn’t think he would make it through a full season. Early in his career, there were many games where Santo felt weak and light-headed on the field. Once during a doubleheader that included an extra-inning game, Santo lost nine pounds and nearly blacked out in the clubhouse.

1

Cap Anson

The most prolific position player of the 19th century, and a seminal figure in the history of baseball, for for both good and bad.