Just One Shy

Today (Sept 2) marks the 37th anniversary of Chicago Cub Milt Pappas' razor thin close call with perfection (in 1972 for those math challenged). After retiring the first 26 batters in a row and reaching a 3-2 count on the 27th batter (Larry Stahl of the San Diego Padres) Pappas was one pitch shy of perfection. Unfortunately the call was a ball (lets not over react to a correct call made by then plate umpire Bruce Froemming) and perfection was "ruined". Pappas did however retire the next batter to secure the no-hitter and an 8 - 0 victory at Wrigley Field. Still today, Pappas has the unique honor of being the only pitcher to have a perfect game "ruined" by a base on ball to the 27th batter.

{1973 #70 love those "earmuffs"}

Pappas's career began in1957 with the Baltimore Orioles appearing in only 4 games, yet 1958 began a string of eleven years in a row of double digit victories. Prior to that infamous day in 1972, Pappas was probably best known for being traded to the Cincinnati Reds during the off season of 1965 for the "old" superstar Frank Robinson.

{1958 # 457 "oh so young"}

Two and half years in Cincinnati and a couple of stints with the Atlanta Braves, Pappas was traded to the Chicago Cubs in June of 1970. Arguably, his finest year was in 1972 as Pappas compiled a 17-7 win-loss record and a top ten in the Cy Young award voting.

Pappas finished his career in 1973 with a 209 - 164 record, 3186 innings pitched and a better than 2 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio (1728 to 858). With 110 wins as an Oriole, Pappas came within one win shy of achieving 100 wins in the NL as well. Pappas would have been just the eighth pitcher to achieve 100 wins in both leagues joining; Cy Young, Al Orth, Jim Bunning, Gaylord Perry, Nolan Ryan, Ferguson Jenkins and Dennis Martinez.

Once again, Pappas was just one shy of being part of an exclusive club. So today I honor Milt Pappas and being just one shy . . .

"Big Z" reaches 100

Carlos Alberto Zambrano of the Chicago Cubs reached victory 100 last night ! Now I know that his 100 wins is over shadowed by Randy Johnson reaching 300 wins earlier this week but the Cubs and Zambrano should celebrate just a little bit.

Zambrano becomes only the fourth Chicago Cub pitcher in the last fifty years to reach that plateau with the club; thats right he is now in the company of HOF'r Ferguson Jenkins, soon to be HOF'r Greg Maddux and the powerful Rick Reuschel as the only Cub pitchers in the modern era to garner 100 wins wearing Cubbie Blue.

Zambrano also hit his franchise record 18th career homerun to help the Cubs win 2 - 1 while allowing only 2 hits through 6 2 /3 innings. He celebrated his 28th birthday last week; comes off his suspension, hits a homerun, pitches a gem and then announces he "wants to retire when his current contract expires" in 2012.

It bothers me that after a strong performance on the mound (and at the plate), reaching a minor milestone (100 wins is minor in the overall scheme of things) this three time all-star and two time silver slugger awardee is bombarded with questions concerning reaching 300 wins. I guess that is the state of the game these days - the constant comparison and pressure to achieve stratosphere status. Zambrano makes $ 16 million this year, will make upwards of $ 50 million more by the time his contract runs out . . . why should he even contemplate pitching after he turns 32 ? ! He is the state of the game - play hard, play to win, play with emotion and energy, get paid buckets of money and "retire" !

I like to celebrate "little" things like; a beautiful Florida sunset, an unsolicited hug or "I love you" from my daughter, finding an extra $ 20 in my pocket, receiving a bubble mailer with baseball cards from the mail box, and a Chicago Cub pitcher reaching 100 wins !

Congratulations "Big Z", this Cubs fan wants you to pitch strong, hard and win as many more games as you can. Never mind personal milestones, lets get the World Series Ring . . . then you can "retire".

Today is a special day

for several reasons but most importantly for Chicago Cubs fans. Today at Wrigley Field is when uniform # 31 will officially be retired honoring pitching greats Ferguson Jenkins and Greg Maddux.

Jenkins, already a HOF'r (1991 inductee) will be joined by Maddux in a few years (probably a first ballot inductee in 2013). A look at their careers provides us some insight into two of the greatest pitchers of their, or any, era.

Jenkins: 19 year career, 4500 innings pitched, 3192 strikeouts / 997 walks issued, 284 wins, 267 complete games and pitched over 300 innings five times (four consecutive from 1968 - 1971). Won his first Cy Young in 1971 as a Chicago Cub !

Maddux: 23 year career, 5008 innings pitched, 3371 strikeouts / 999 walks, 355 wins, 109 complete games won 15 or more games in seventeen consecutive years. Won his first Cy Young in 1992 as a Chicago Cub !

Some other noteworthy milestones / dates:
Ferguson Jenkins: hit 13 career homeruns; on May 7, 1969 pitched a 12 inning complete game (finally losing 4 -2 to the L.A. Dodgers); on June 4, 1971 earned his 100th win (an 11 - 0 shutout of the Atlanta Braves); threw 24 complete games in a 28 game stretch from July 21, 1970 to May 23 1971 and on May 25, 1982 became the seventh pitcher to record 3000 strikeouts; striking out Gerry Templeton.

Greg Maddux: hit five career homeruns; on Sept 13, 1988 became the first Chicago Cub pitcher since Jenkins in 1971 to beat every NL team in one season, beating the Phillies 9 - 2; on Aug 7, 2004 notched his 300th victory, leading the Cubs to a 8 - 4 win over the San Fransisco Giants; and on July 26, 2005: became the 13th pitcher to record 3000 strikeouts fanning Omar Vizquel.

So, today, Congratulations are in order for Jenkins and Maddux, the Chicago Cub organization for finally getting # 31 to hang from the foul pole, all Cubs fans and any other basbeall fan of solid control style pitching.

Today also marks my first post in over a week. I have just been rather busy with "life" and have had a lack of time to write "intelligently" (though I have read many many, and transacted a few trades). I will try to get back to my normal writing groove this week - I am sure I was not missed. In a future post I will explain in more detail what I have been up to instead.

Today is also a birthday of a friend of mine who is turning 49. We were college roommates and share many memories. He is "celebrating" his last year of his first half centrury . . . Happy Birthday Steve (yes we also share first names).

Today is a special day . . .

1993 Upper Deck All Time Heroes

It has taken some time but I finally have completed sorting, storing and logging in all the Cubs Cards that Jim at gcrl sent me and I found these three unusual (shaped) cards (at least they were to me).

A little bit of digging found these are from the 1993 Upper Deck All-Time Heroes set. This set includes 165 cards (130 regular and 35 in what is called "classic combinations"), measure 2 1/4" x 5 1/4" and feature a three panel look. These cards are patterned after the T-202 Hassan Triple Folder cards of 1912.

The regular set of cards have a candid or action shot of the player in the larger middle pane with a portrait style photo on the left. The right panel has the B A T (Baseball Assistance Team) logo.

The backs have a nice bio of the player, a nickname and career highlights to go along with a description of the BAT cause (an organization to help baseball families in need).
Ferguson Jenkins # 74: Mr Durability

Ron Santo # 113: Hot Corner Hero

The classic combination cards have center panels featuring artwork or photographs of the "all time great" and the side panels have portrait style photos as well. The backs have the side panels with the bio's and the middle panel describing the players association with each other.
Tinker - Evers # 147: Hall of Fame Infield

These are quite unusual cards in many ways and I think I like them. Thank you Jim, for introducing these cards to me. That is one of the great things about this blogosphere we participate in . . . learning, exploring new ground and enjoying new cards.

If anyone has these cards and have tips on storing them, please help me. If anyone has any of these cards and does not want to store them . . . I will find them a good clean safe home.

These 1993 Upper Deck All-Time Great (BAT) cards are now on my "look for" list.

Where and how do I start ?

Three and a half months ago I started this blog and had no idea what, where, how or anything about the blogosphere, bloggers or the "new" hobby I had so loved way back when. Today I can honestly say I still have no idea of so many things but one thing is for sure - baseball card bloggers are some of the most generous people around !

Opening Day 2009 (yes April 6th) was a day to remember. The Cubs won and I received a "small" box of cards from Jim at gcrl . A say "small" as sarcastically as I can - it was a 400 count box filled with CUBS cards ! On the day the Cubs win I won too !




From Sandberg to Dawson to Wood, Sosa and Grace- so many swings and smiles to make my heart go beat beat beat. Did you notice the Sandberg and Dawson 1988 Leaf pop ups ? Upper left corner in photos (The ones with the outline around their torso).
Check out Sosa running so fast in his powerful stride that his helmet flies off (1997 Topps # 305) and Kerry Wood showing off his "secret" grip on the ball (2008 UD # 327).
Jim also sent some "vintage", heritage, tradition, archives and cards of stars from yesteryear. A batting champ (Madlock) a Hall of Famer (Jenkins) and half an all-star infield (Santo - Kessinger) plus a few Cubs that could have been somethings.

Did I mention that Jim sent a few cards . . .


So many more Cubs cards and so many 1991's from Fleer, Stadium Club, Topps, Leaf, and Studio 91; all for my daughters binder and did I mention some Cubs cards ? !

Something only a Rangers fan may find interesting; in the Fleer 1991 set, there is a pitcher named Jeff Russell and a catcher named John Russell - did they ever appear together as battery mates making a Russell Russell battery ?

Jim also sent a stack of O-Pee-Chee 1986 Cubs cards and several 1988 Pacific Trading (series 1) to get me closer to completing that set.

All in all, Jim sent me so many cards that as soon as I though I was getting organized, I have more to log in and store.

For me Opening Day 2009 will be remembered for the generosity of a blogger named Jim of gcrl the Dodger fan from Minnesota. Thank you !

more from the show

this being my second (and last) post "showing off" my finds at the card show this past Saturday I want to remind everyone that I did remember my promise to stick to my budget etc . . . and most of my "to do" promises for the wife . . .

For starters, I did pick up several 1970 Topps cards (mostly mid-high numbers) in addition to the ever elusive Al Oliver # 166 (gold trophy topps all-star rookie card). Since I am chronicling this set card by card I will not post any scans . . . yet. I am now at 683 of 720 or 95 % complete; soon I will have to splurge on the Reggie Jackson (#140), Henry Aaron (#500) and the Nolan Ryan (#712). Those are my only missing big ticket cards. Getting closer I am . . .

At the last show I went to I was introduced to the 1995 Flair set with my the one only card, Sammy Sosa #334 - I really like this card / set and added them to my "look for" list. I found a small handful, actually 13 of these heavy card stock cards, in a bargain basket.

These three show off the fronts of my new favorite "modern" set. I really like the horizontal look, double photo, and scripted initials of the players (the scans may not be so clear for that ). Finding a future HOF'er (possibly two in Larkin and Johnson) as well as a Mark Grace was nice.

I also scanned a back for you to see. The backs show a third (different) photo of each player, is the traditional up/down orientation but only shows five or six years of stats (the only down side to these cards). I liked this Ryan Klesko photo . . . each hand holding a batting glove as he seems to be leading off of first base.

I also could not pass up on a few (actually found five) Ken Griffey Jr cards . . .

including two 1991's for my daughters binder and one for me with Griffey Sr and his two sons.

My real "splurge" came from the 1976 Topps set . . . The Sporting News All-Time All Stars !

This small (10 card) sub-set is a real classic. I added these three cards to bring me only one short of completion (missing Babe Ruth # 345). Who can resist these classic black and white photos of when baseball was so different.

I also picked up a few random Cubs cards to fill some gaps; including these two; a 1968 Lee Elia # 561, though more famous for his managerial days / tirade he did appear as a pinch hitting infielder for the Cubs (though appeared in only 15 games) and a 1968 NL Pitching Leaders #5 with Fergie Jenkins.

And I could not pass up three great mustache cards !

So, all in all, I kept all (most) of my promises, had a blast looking around, added cards to several parts of my collection and now Opening Day is here !

Thanks for allowing me to share my limited yet fun additions.

my "31" cents worth

For us Chicago Cubs fans, May 3rd, 2009, will be a day for the history books. The Cubs are finally retiring uniform # 31. Though worn by several in Cubs lore, two pitchers who will now be forever remembered with this uniform are HOF'er Ferguson Jenkins and (soon to be HOF) 300 game winner Greg Maddux. Both boast over 3000 K's and fewer than 1000 walks !

This has been a long time waiting for Jenkins but having these two super stars in Cubs history share this honor is fitting. The # 31 will now fly proudly on the outfield pole along side; #10, #14, # 23 and # 26 !

Most would only pay a penny for my thoughts but I just gave you my "$ .31 cents worth".

Mystery Fergie

I received a card via a bulk (50 assorted Cubs) e-bay purchase last week and in going through to sort them I came across this Ferguson Jenkins card.

I can not place this card with a set or manufacturer. So . . . I am looking for some insight from the blogging community experts out there.

Anybody know anything about this 1992 Ferguson Jenkins ? the front artwork depicts Fergie in stride, with the cubbie blue stripeed uniform but no logo on the hat or jersey ?the back is not numbered in any way; has a Kodak Film, Colorado Rockies and a Major League Baseball Players Alumni logo along with the copy written 1992. The card also states "Reunion Edition Collector Card".

as we used to say in youth baseball when the someone would hit the ball beyond anyone's running ability . . . "little help" . . .

More Cubs Cards !

I have not won many contests in my life and I am pessimistic when it comes to contests submitted by fellow bloggers (only because my bank of knowledge is minuscule compared to most of you) but . . . Jack "the" Baseball Dad from the All Tribe blog had a picture contest and I guess I was the first to reply correctly.

I consider it just good timing but . . . my prize was a great selection of Cubs cards . . . here are just a few . . .

. . . as I am still amazed at the tremendous generosity of fellow bloggers as well as the myriad of different cards (and mfg's) out there . . . I really like the 2000 Fleer Tradition Bo Porter, 1992 George Bell, 2008 UD Starquest and Spectrum Soriano and of course the Donruss DK HOF Heroes of Fergie ! Thanks Jack !

I just might start entering more contests . . .

A Cubs Cornucopia

As you may remember, I attended my first card show in over 17 years yesterday, and to my surprise I was able to find some real bargains. About the tenth table I visited, I noticed a sign that read "20 cards for $ 1.00" and it caught my eye. What was most interesting is that the cards were sorted by TEAM. I naturally looked through the CUBS stack, found 40 cards and walked away incredible happy. Here are some of my finds in this bargain find:

Maddux bunting ('91 UD), Dawson ('92 Leaf) eyeing to throw someone out and a Jenkins ('83 Fleer) ready to take the mound. If that was not enough I also found:

more "modern" players with some great photography in sets I hardly knew existed. I really like the Brooks Kieschnick, top row right ('96 Topps Gallery), with his right leg cocked to stride and left cheek full of chew and the Kerry Wood, bottom row right (2000 SP Authentic). Derek May, Carlos Zambrano, Moises Alou and Aramis Ramirez were also great additions to my find. But that is not all . . . I also found this "vintage '63 Fleer of Mark Grace.

The 1963 Fleer set is one of my all-time favorites (see my wants list) and to find a Mark Grace is nice bonus. One other nice discovery is this 1979 Dave Rader.Rader spent only one year in a Chicago Cub uniform (1978) and was runner-up to Jon Matlack for ROY honors in 1972. A fine defensive catcher, spent 10 years in the majors and had a lifetime BA of .257 with 30 homeruns. A one year Cubbie and now he is in my collection.

My favorite card I found in this bargain bin is this 1995 Flair of Sammy Sosa (I know, steroids, steroids, steroids) but this is a card I had never known about before yesterdays show and I really like it. The Flair could appear on my trade lists very soon (hint hint).

So that is just a small sample of what I found in this team bargain box. Next month I will hit this dealer first and stock up with more Chicago Cubs cards and continue adding to my cornucopia.

My first card show in 2009

. . . to be perfectly honest, I went to my first card show since 1991 (yes that is right, 17, seventeen years ago). I had been itching to find a local show since I started this blog and finally found one fifteen minutes away in a small hotel.

I did the smart thing and printed out my "needs" list, added a few notes and ventured out. Promising myself to stick to a budget, keep my "needs" in mind and not succumb to buying the latest and greatest. I think I did ok . . .

here is a summary of what I picked up:
a) 5 Topps All-Star Rookie cards from the mid 1970's (all "needs" and set me back just $ 1.00)

b) a starter set of 25 cards from 1991 called Studio 91 of Fleer; not sure how many are in the set but I am looking for 1991's so this was a good find ( $ 2.00 for all 25)

c) in my quest to complete my 1970 set, I found a nice guy who had quite a collection of "vintage" cards - I picked up 17 cards, including a Juan Marichel, Brooks Robinson and the "Seaver Wins Opener" from the NL Playoffs (all for $ 15.00)

d) I saw a box marked 20 cards for $ 1.00 all sorted by team. How could I resist ? ! I picked up 40 Chicago Cubs; including two Andre Dawson ('92 Leaf, '90 UD), a '83 Ferguson Jenkins, a 1995 Flair Sammy Sosa (never heard of Flair before today and really like this card), a 1978 George Mitterwald, a 1979 Dave Rader and a few Maddux's, Sandbergs, Zambrano's, Lee's, Soriano's, and even a Vintage 1963 Mark Grace (1998 Fleer) . . . a great pick up of 40 cards for only $ 2.00 !

I will be scanning several of these finds and sharing more with you but for now I just wanted to let everyone know that I survived my first card show in seventeen years, stuck to my budget and found some real good deals (I think). It is now time for me to put away my "needs" list and tend to the "honey do" list . . .

and 40 years ago the hobby was . . .

. . . much much simpler, to put in mildly. I live by the Winnie-the-Pooh philosophy of "simple brain, simple things"and today's hobby literally overwhelms me.


As so many of the baseball card collecting world is focused on the "new" cards of 2009 (and as I understand the over 300 different sets and subsets to collect), I am resisting all temptation to "get with the times" and am saving my money (as little as that might be these days) to supplement my "vintage" collection.

40 years ago, collecting cards was "pure" . . . little investment required, tremendous joy in finding stars and non-stars and the games we played with these cards. There were no Walmarts or Targets to rush to, no card shops to hound, just the local five and dime to head to after school on our bicycles. The joy we found in opening up packs of cards back then is the same joy felt today by so many . . . however . . .

We played the popular flipping games, competed in "how many cards can we fit in our bicycle spokes" and calculated trades with friends. My best friend back in those days was a White Sox fan and we spent hours trying to make trades that were "fair". We compared batting averages, homeruns, doubles, and triples; era's, strikeout to walk ratios and wins vs losses record. We made trades "fair" based on production on the field not monetary value. Such a idyllic thing to do.

Those were the days . . . here are my favorite Cubs from 1969 . . . just to help me remember the "good ol' days" . . . .

So in fairness, I still "play" with my cards, though "play" now includes, page protectors, top loaders, and blogging.

Above are the three Chicago Cub Hall of Famers (from "those days"), the three backbones of the Cubs from the late sixties and early seventies, the three Cubs who stood tall amongst the rest.

I am still testing my resistance levels . . . 40 years ago life (baseball and card collecting) was so different . . .

Who will wear # 9 in 2009 ?

I have been on a uniform number “kick” in a couple of previous posts so I thought I would continue my discussion and ask this question. Who will wear uniform # 9 in 2009 ? To begin with I must confess I have no cards of “proof” for what I am going to tell you though my official source of very reliable information is Cubs by the Numbers

The answer for the 2009 Chicago Cubs will be Reed Johnson, who will proudly wear uniform # 9 in 2009.

From the historical perspective, the Cubs did not have uniform numbers until the 1932 campaign and over the last 77 years only 22 players or coaches ( 29%) have worn the uniform number of the year on the calendar.

So here goes in uniform number order:
Uniform # 1: Augie Ojeda year 2001
Uniform # 2: Sandy Alomar Sr. (coach) year 2002
Uniform #3: Wendall Kim (coach) year 2003
Uniform # 4: Jason DuBois year 2004
Uniform # 5: Nomar Garciaparra year 2005
Uniform # 6: Sonny Jackson (coach) year 2006
Uniform # 7: Mark DeRosa year 2007
Uniform # 8: Mike Quade (coach) year 2008
Uniform # 9: Reed Johnson year 2009
Uniform # 34: Stan Hack year 1934
Uniform # 39: Bob Garback year 1939
Uniform # 41: Vance Page year 1941
Uniform # 43: Bill Nicholson year 1943
Uniform # 44: Phil Cavarretta year 1944
Uniform # 45: Ed Saver year 1945
Uniform # 46: Dom Dallessandro year 1946
Uniform # 47: Peanuts Lowery year 1947
Uniform # 48: Andy Pafko year 1948
Uniform # 53: Johnny Schmitz year 1953
Uniform # 55: El Tappe year 1955
Uniform # 57: Vito Valentinetti year 1957
Uniform # 64: Joe Macko (coach) year 1964

Not a star-studded collection, though any list with Cavarretta and Pafko is not half bad. Even though the 1940’s dominated this list, it is interesting (at least to me) that as of the turn of this century almost every team should have a player wearing the number of the calendar year (aside for those clubs that have retired numbers and of course no one will wear # 42 in the year 1942 or ever).

For those of you and curious about next year already, 2010, no Cubbie will wear uniform #10, it is proudly retired by the Cubs in honor of Ron Santo, along with Banks #14, Sandberg #23 and Williams #26. Maybe in the next few years we will see 1931 (Greg Maddux’s and as I was corrected Ferguson Jenkins uniform #31) eliminated from contention also.

So who will wear uniform # 9 in 2009 for your favorite team ?

Cubs Convention is over - Spring training is near

A friend of mine in Chicago just called me (as I now live in Sarasota and wintertime is not a usual time to call us who live in "paradise") but nonetheless he called.

While he has recently discovered my renewed interest with baseball cards and now in the world of blogging he was mostly calling to share with me that the Chicago Cubs just concluded their 24th annual convention, which unofficially is the kick-off to Spring Training and the upcoming season.

Twenty years ago we went to the Cubs Convention and remember shaking hands with all of our childhood stars and eating ball park food (though it tastes much better at Wrigley than in a hotel).

The memories are still there and I just reviewed the list of stars at this years convention which still include all my "heros" from the sixties and seventies; Banks, Williams, Beckert, Jenkins, Santo; stars from the eighties, nineties and current players galore.

The best thing about the Cubs Convention this year is that I am in Florida enjoying our "chilly" weather and that Spring Training is near. Cubs Home Opener at Wrigley is April 13, only 86 days from today. The Cubs will (ok might) shine in two thousand and nine.

Jim Palmer - 1973 and 100 Wins !

In another one of my entries that I term a “Clemente-ism” I present Jim Palmer and his Topps 1973 card # 160.

Before I continue, let me explain what I mean. The term “Clemente-ism” is my way of describing a statistical rarity on ones baseball card (honoring Clementes’ 1973 card # 50, his last card and eerily career ending with exactly 3000 hits) I have had two previous “Clemente-ism” posts; one Clemente and the the 1970 Willie Mays 600HR on card # 600 in Dec 2008). I like the backs of cards as much as the fronts, maybe that is because the “vintage” cards had weak photography on the front (most of the time) in comparison to today’s action shots. So, I have extended this “Clemente-ism” to any card that has a milestone (or coincidence) that culminated at year’s end.

Jim Palmer, one of the premier pitchers of all time won 3 time Cy Young awards, voted a 6 time all-star and enshrined in the Hall of Fame, spent his entire 19 years as a professional with the Baltimore Orioles (1965 – 1984) and his uniform # 22 is naturally never to be worn again in Baltimore. From the years between 1970 and 1978, Palmer won 176 games, reaching the 20 victory plateau in 8 of those nine years (almost besting Ferguson Jenkins in the 20 win streak category).

One unique factoid; in 575 games played (including 17 postseason games) Palmer never allowed a grand slam.

An in regards to why this card is a “Clemente-ism”; at the end of the 1972 campaign as indicated on this card, Palmer had 100 wins !

Ok, just one of my quirky things I notice about the stats on the back of some cards. Let me know if you have noticed any of these statistical coincidences . . . stay tuned for more of my “Clemente-ism’s” . . .

Ferguson Jenkins - Cub Leader and League Leader

Ferguson Jenkins is an all-time fan favorite of the Chicago Cubs and is also a League Leader –shown here paired with fellow Hall of Famers, Gibson and Perry as a 1970 League Leader in Wins and Strikeouts.

Between these four pitchers there are eight Cy Young awards (Perry actually had one in each league).

Jenkins was the backbone of the Cubs rotation and had six consecutive years of 20 wins or more from 1967 until 1972. Jenkins also boasts membership in the over 3000 under 1000 club; over 3000 strikeouts and under 1000 walks (can any other pitcher say that ?).


An interesting note about the 1969 Cubs team; Jenkins was the only non-USA born player on that roster, being a proud Canadian.

Jenkins has 267 career complete games, more than Gibson (255) or Seaver (231) to go along with his 284 career wins.

Fergie will always be a Cub Leader, League Leader, Hall of Famer and a top tier pitcher of all-time.

Cubs three Hall of Famers from 1969

Back in the early days of my collecting I picked up these three cards. Back in the day when I collected cards of the stars I cheered for, back in the day when baseball was played for the shear enjoyment of the game.

Jenkins, Williams and Banks: three names in Chicago Cub history that is synonymous with the potential the Cubs had throughout the sixites. Three players, who are among the greatest players of all time to never, play in a World Series game.

Six years separate each in their major league experience as the 1969 season began. After playing together in 1967 and 1968 the hopes to make it all come together in 1969 were as strong as ever.

Jenkins, coming into his fifth year as a big leaguer, back from two consecutive 20 win seasons (he would end up with six consecutive 20 win seasons pitching in Wrigley field with the Cubs).

Williams the consistent powerful offensive production coming back from his 1968 numbers 30 HR, 98 RBI and a .288 batting average and then there was Banks.

Banks, entering his seventeenth year as a Cub coming off of hitting 32 round trippers in 1968, the most he had had in six previous seasons.

The front of the 1969 cards of these three; the intensity of Jenkins eyes, the power in Williams’ swing and the playful smile on Banks make for the high hopes entering 1969 even more thrilling. The full card photo and white frame with a thin black outline make for a real clean looking card. The orange circle with the players name and position is a nice touch.

Banks’ card has this orange circle right over his shoulder, looking like the sun, setting in the background at Wrigley and for his career.

The backs are no less interesting. Jenkins’ has a drawing of a skinny umpire saying “he wears me out” in recognizing Jenkins’ 260 club record strikeouts in 1968 (he would go on to break his own record in 1969 and then again in 1970) and Williams’ card showcases his Rookie of the Year trophy earned in 1961.


And then there is Bank’s card – no drawing just sixteen years of statistics, all with Chicago N.L. as his team.

Banks, Jenkins and Williams: the heart of the Cubs past, present and future (from 1969 of course); three great players who never played in a World Series; three Chicago Cub Hall of Famers.