My Favorite 75 Cubs Whom I've Seen Playby Vvvergeer - 75 cards (Last updated on Aug 14, 2021) |
September 21, 2020. Yu moves in. Hamels never made it. Kimbrel doesn't look like he has much of a chance.
I've been a Cubs fan all my life. The conscious-of-baseball part of my life starts in about 1970. I've watched some pretty bad teams, but there were always players -- some great, some just fun -- whom I loved to watch. This is my attempt to compile my favorite 75, roughly in order of preference. (It started as 50, expanded to 91, then I cut it back to 75 -- so many players I remember). As you can see, it's not just about stats. There are some odd choices in here. Some, I just liked their grit. Some just had great nicknames. The deeper you get into the list, the more they blend together in order of preference. And I'm probably forgetting quite a few....
The representative cards are the the oldest card I have of each player as a Cub. (Had to pick SOME criteria).
Hope you enjoy it. Feel free to remind me of players I probably loved but left off the list.
21. 1963 Topps #353 Billy Williams
Watched the tail end of his career, but just had to respect him. A Cub legend. |
22. 2016 Topps #66 Kyle Schwarber
He started high on this list, with his legendary World Series. But he's been a bit of a disappointment. 2018 was supposed to be the year. It wasn't. Still kind of love him, though, and still think he might hit 40 homers one year. But 2019 hasn't started well.
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23. 2015 Topps #616 Kris Bryant
Love him, but somehow not my favorite on the team right now. He's slipping on this list and on the field. Injury? Dunno? But there are a lot of popups and strikeouts.
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24. 2004 Topps #457 Ryan Dempster
Another prankster who had seasons as a great starter and closer for the Cubs. |
25. 1985 Topps #210 Gary Matthews
Sarge! Love a good nickname and a veteran who's still doing a good job. He helped make the 1984 team fun, with all the left field fans saluting him. |
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28. 2016 Topps #151 Jon Lester
He's been really good. I wish he could throw to first base. I almost feel bad for him. He was the savior of the Cubs. Then Arrieta took off and stole all the pitching glory. But he's been really good and is a classy guy, as well. 2018 was a nice comeback season for him, too. And 2019 started well, but he's losing it a little. |
29. 2016 Topps #447 Ben Zobrist
MVP of the World Series. Ultimate utility player. Love him. I just always trust that something good will happen when he's up.
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30. 1984 Topps #357 Ron Cey
The Penguin. Another veteran on the way down who helped make the 1984 Cubs, the first play-off team I ever watched. |
Comments
As usual, your commentary is the star of the list. | ||
Awww, thanks, Billy. | ||
Fun list to look at. As a Cardinals fan who detests the Cubs but loves baseball, I grew up watching the Cubs just about every day in the 80s. And yes, I emphasize the word "day"! We lived too far east in Illinois to get the Cardinals channel. So I especially enjoyed your cards from that era. Also, I was hoping to see Warren Brusstar. | ||
As a Cubs fan growing up deep in Cardinal territory, where they had their AA affiliate in Little Rock, Arkansas, I enjoyed catching all the gmes on WGN in the 80's and 90's listening and watching Harry and Steve's broadcasts. Yes, I did go see the minor league team play quite a bit. The team is no longer affiliated with the Cardinals which made a ton of Cardinals fans there VERY unhappy. I have to say my favorite Cubs player is Mark Grace. Though he was not a prolific home run hitter he was a very consistent contact hitter with some pop who saved Shawon Dunston a ton of errors in the field over the years. I was happy to see him win the World Series with the Diamondbacks in 2001. Ryno is a close second.
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What, no Dennis Lamp?! Among the starters, he was the Cubs' ERA leader in '78 and '79, but pitched in hard luck. I've seen about 20 MLB games in person and Lamp started the first Cubs game I attended, Aug. 11, 1978 at Olympic Stadium. Ross Grimsley tossed a two-hit shutout, 1-0. The player I really wanted to see was Dave Kingman, but his only appearance was pinch-hitting for Lamp in the 9th inning, where he drew a walk. The Big O had foul lines painted on its inner rim, which were put there after Kingman hit a monster shot off that part of the stadium in an earlier game. |
