EveryCubEver--Hall of Famers

 

Yes, it's true, I'm not doing an update of EveryCubEver this season. On the other hand, I do plan on featuring every Hall of Fame Cub on or around their birthdays this year right here on this blog. And those entries will be from EveryCub Ever.

There are three Cubs Hall of Famers born this week.

February 25—Monte Irvin  1919–2016 (Cubs 1956)

Irvin was a star in the Negro Leagues and didn’t make his debut in the majors until at the age of 30. But even though he only played a few big league seasons and hit only 99 career homers, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1973. He had a few great seasons with the Giants, leading them to the National League pennant in 1951 and the World Series championship in 1954. When the Cubs got him in 1956, he was already 37 years old. His power stroke was diminished, but he was still the best left fielder in the league. In his last big league season he led the National League in fielding percentage and range. When he died in 2016 he was the oldest living major leaguer.

February 25—Ron Santo 1940–2010  (Cubs 1960-1973, Cubs announcer 1990-2010)

He was the captain of that ill-fated (but incredibly talented) 1969 Cubs team – the man who clicked his heels after each Cubs victory. Santo was also the one who had the black cat cross his path while he stood in the on-deck circle in New York. Ron Santo is a Hall of Famer, something he wanted to be more than anything else in the world. Unfortunately, he wasn’t inducted until after his death. His credentials should never have been questioned. Santo was a nine-time All-Star and five-time Gold Glover at third base. He hit 342 homers, and was the dominant player at his position (in the National League) during his playing days. And he did it all despite suffering from diabetes.

After his playing career he joined the Cubs radio broadcast booth, teaming up with the great Pat Hughes. He lost both legs to diabetes during his broadcasting days, and made an even stronger bond with Cubs fans. He never complained about his medical misfortune, and he exhibited the same kind of raw emotion that Cubs fans experienced: incredible joy when they won, and pure agony when they lost. His number was retired in 2003 and a #10 flag now flies on the left field foul pole at Wrigley Field. 

Santo also holds the Cubs career record for grounding into the most double plays (240).

Historical note: On the day Neil Armstrong walked on the moon (1969), Santo hit a game-winning home run against the Phillies in Philadelphia.

February 26—Grover Cleveland Alexander 1887–1950 (Cubs 1918-1926)

His 373 wins are the third most in baseball history. And yes, he was a Cub. He won 128 games in his years with the Cubs and had one of the best seasons in baseball history in 1920, when he led the league in wins, ERA, and strikeouts. But Alexander was troubled during his Cubs years. The only reason they got him at all was because the owner of the Phillies didn’t want to get stuck paying the contract of his star pitcher (a three-time 30 game winner) if he got drafted into World War I. He did get drafted, and he came back from the war a changed man.

Old Pete, as he was known, became one of the biggest drinkers in the league during Prohibition. He showed up drunk to games. He fell asleep in the clubhouse and passed out drunk in the dugout. He smoked like a chimney before every game. He ignored his manager and openly challenged his authority. The Cubs understood up to a point. After all, the man was suffering through medical, physical, and mental problems. He was an epileptic and was prone to seizures. His arm started hurting during his Cubs career, and he had the ligament “snapped back into place” by a man named James “Bonesetter” Smith. And throughout it all he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder after his horrific war experience.

Somehow, against all odds, he continued to pitch well. In 1923, he pitched 305 innings and walked only 30 men. In 1924, he won his 300th game. But in 1926, after his catcher and best friend Bill Killefer went to the Cardinals, Alexander fell apart. In his last ten games with the Cubs, Old Pete showed up drunk six times and missed two games altogether. The Cubs released him and the Cardinals picked him up on waivers. Back with his best friend Killefer, he regained his pitching touch and led the Cardinals to the World Series championship, winning Game 6, and saving Game 7 of the 1926 series. Two years after his 1950 death, his story was told in the film The Winning Team, starring Ronald Reagan. Grover Cleveland Alexander remains the only player in baseball history to be named after a president and portrayed in a movie by a president.

Historical note: On the day that Warren Harding made history by being the first president to broadcast on the radio (1922), Alexander was on the mound for the Cubs. He lost the game 5-4 to the Giants.