Why?
McGurn was outraged that his club’s (the Green Mill) star attraction had refused to renew his contract. Lewis went to a competitor instead, playing to a full house at the New Rendezvous.
On November 27, three of McGurn’s men stormed into Lewis’ hotel suite, beat him and then cut his throat from ear to ear. The comedian survived the attack, and was even able to recover his singing voice, but McGurn's boss--Al Capone, was very unhappy with his lieutenant's behavior. He advanced Lewis $10,000 so that the performer could get back on his feet.
While newspaper headlines blared the story of the McGurn/Lewis confrontation, the Cubs quietly traded their second baseman Sparky Adams and outfielder Pete Scott for a disgruntled star outfielder on the Pittsburgh Pirates. His name was Kiki Cuyler.
Cuyler went on to lead the Cubs to pennant in 1929, a near miss in 1930, and another pennant in 1932. Even though the Cubs didn't win the World Series in either year, Cuyler wasn't the reason. He hit .300 in the 1929 Series and led the team in RBI. In 1932, he homered in the same game that Babe Ruth supposedly called his shot.
Cuyler also provided something for the Cubs that they wouldn't have for another 45 years: speed. He led the league in stolen bases in 1929 and 1930. Between 1930 when he stole 37 bases and 1975 when Jose Cardenal stole 34, not a single Cubs player stole more than 30 bases in a season.
Machine Gun Jack McGurn's impact would be felt in an entirely different way. After allegedly being the mastermind of the St. Valentines Day massacre, McGurn was gunned down on the anniversary of that crime a few years later.
