Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 17:46, 9 April 2008

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Chicago Cubs" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (March 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

For current information on this topic, see 2008 Chicago Cubs season. (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Chicago Cubs
2025 Chicago Cubs season
File:NLC-CHC-Logo.png Logo Cap insignia
Established in 1878
Major league affiliations
National League (1876–present) Central Division (1994–present)
Current uniform
File:NLC-Uniform-CHC.PNG
Retired numbers	10, 14, 23, 26, 42
Name
Chicago Cubs (1902–present) Chicago Orphans (1898-1901) Chicago Colts (1890-1897) Chicago White Stockings (1870-1871, 1874-1889) (a.k.a. Remnants 1898-1901)
Other nicknames
The Cubbies, The North Siders
Ballpark
Wrigley Field (1916–present) a.k.a. Cubs Park 1920-1926 a.k.a. Weeghman Park 1916-1920 West Side Park (II) 1893-1915 South Side Park 1891-1893 West Side Park (I) 1885-1891 Lakefront Park (II) 1883-1884 Lakefront Park (I) 1878-1882 23rd Street Grounds 1874-1877 Union Base-Ball Grounds 1870-1871
Major league titles
World Series titles (2)	1908 • 1907
NL Pennants (16)	1945 • 1938 • 1935 • 1932 1929 • 1918 • 1910 • 1908 1907 • 1906 • 1886 • 1885 1882 • 1881 • 1880 • 1876
Central Division titles (2)	2007 • 2003
East Division titles (2)	1989 • 1984
Wild card berths (1)	1997
Front office
Principal owner(s)	Sam Zell
General manager	Jim Hendry
Manager	Lou Piniella

The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team based in Chicago, Illinois. The Cubs are members and defending champions of the Central Division of Major League Baseball’s National League. The club has played their home games at historic Wrigley Field since 1916. The Cubs are one of two Major League clubs in Chicago, the other being the Chicago White Sox, and are one of the only two remaining charter members left in the NL, the other being the Atlanta Braves. The club's longevity and early success add up to a major league record 9,985 victories for a franchise in a single city.

The Cubs are often referred to by fans and media as The North Siders, since Wrigley is in Chicago's north side Lakeview community, or simply as The Cubbies.

The Cubs are currently managed by Lou Piniella and their general manager is Jim Hendry. In December, 2007, Sam Zell completed the purchase of the club's parent company, Tribune Company, and intends to sell the team.

Early franchise history

White Stockings/Colts

The success and fame of the Cincinnati Red Stockings of 1869, baseball's first openly all-professional team, led to an explosion of other pro teams, each with the goal of defeating the Red Stockings. Most adopted variants on that name, and it happens that Chicago adopted white. On April 29, 1870, the team played their first game against the St. Louis Unions, winning 47-1.

In 1871, the first professional league, the National Association was formed. The White Stockings were close contenders until October, but the Great Chicago Fire destroyed the teams home field, Union Base-Ball Grounds, and the players uniforms and equipment, but they still managed to finish 2nd in the N.A. However, the club was compelled to drop out of the league during the city's recovery period until ultimately being revived in 1874, playing in 23rd Street Grounds. After the 1875 season, Chicago acquired several key players, including future Hall of Famers: pitcher Albert Spalding; and first baseman / manager Adrian "Cap" Anson, who played 27 years and amassed some impressive numbers both at bat and as the team's manager. Anson was the first player ever to reach 3,000 hits. Behind the scenes, the club's president, William Hulbert was leading the formation of a new, stronger organization, the National League.

Hulbert's team cruised through the National League's inaugural season of 1876, and went on to have many more great seasons. In 1880, they finished 67-17, for an all-time record .798 winning percentage. Extrapolating that record out to a 162 game season would yield 129 wins. Since those early teams played only 84 contests with long travel times between series, most teams got by with only two principal starting pitchers, and Chicago had some powerhouse hurlers in Larry Corcoran, Fred Goldsmith and later John Clarkson, who won 53 games and brought Chicago a pennant.

A second major league, called the American Association, came along in 1882, and Chicago met the AA's champions three times in that era's version of the World Series. Twice they faced the St. Louis Browns in competitive and controversial action, the first Series ending in dispute and the second one being the only Series won by an AA team. That Browns club would later be renamed the Cardinals and continues to be a perennial rival of the Cubs to date.

The print media used the nickname Colts and then the Orphans for brief periods before ultimately being dubbed the Cubs in the early 1900s. The name Chicago White Stockings was adopted in 1900 by another Chicago team, which was to be part of the newly formed American League.

Golden years - a Cub dynasty

Joe Tinker (shortstop), Johnny Evers (second baseman), and Frank Chance (first baseman) were three Cubs infielders who played together at Chicago's West Side Park from 1903 to 1912, forming the nucleus of one of the most dominant baseball teams of all time. Known for turning double plays, the expression "Tinkers to Evers to Chance" basically means a sure thing, as is still used today.

The Cubs again relied on dominant pitching during this period, featuring hurlers such as Mordecai "Three-Finger" Brown, Jack Taylor, Ed Reulbach, Jack Pfiester and Orval Overall. With Chance as player-manager, the Cubs won four pennants and two World Series titles over a five-year span. Although they fell to the White Sox in the 1906 World Series, The Cubs recorded a record 116 victories and the best winning percentage (.763) of the modern era. With this talented roster, Chicago won back to back World Series championships in 1907 and 1908. Veteran catcher Johnny Kling sat out the 1909 season to become a champion pocket billiards player. He was replaced by the then-inexperienced Jimmy Archer. Some historians think Kling's absence was significant enough to prevent the Cubs from also winning the pennant in 1909. As it was, they finished some 6 games out of first place. (Three Finger, Cindy Thomson & Scott Brown, University of Nebraska Press, ISBN 0-8032-4448-7, p.88-89) When Kling returned the next year, the Cubs won the pennant again, but the veteran club was upset by the younger Philadelphia Athletics in the 1910 World Series.

Every three years

With owner William Wrigley's money and William Veeck's front-office savvy, the Cubs were soon back in business in the National League, having built a team that would be strong contenders for the next decade. Hack Wilson, Gabby Hartnett, Rogers Hornsby, and many other stars donned Cub uniforms during this period, and they achieved the unusual accomplishment of winning a pennant every three years - 1929, 1932, 1935 and 1938. Unfortunately, their success did not extend to the post-season, as they fell to their AL rivals each time. The '32 series featured Babe Ruth's "called shot." There were some historic moments for the Cubs as well - they won the '35 pennant in thrilling fashion, winning a record 21 games in a row in September. The '38 club saw Dizzy Dean lead the team's pitching staff and provided a historic moment when they won a late-season game with a "walk-off" homer by Gabby Hartnett, which became known in baseball lore as "The Homer in the Gloamin'." By 1939, the 'double-Bills' (Wrigley and Veeck) had both passed away, and the front office, now under P.K. Wrigley found itself unable to rekindle the kind of success that P.K.'s father had created, and so the team slipped into a few years of mediocrity.

The Curse

The Cubs enjoyed one more pennant at the close of World War II. Due to the wartime travel restrictions, the first three games were played in Detroit, where the Cubs won two games, including a one-hitter by Claude Passeau, and the final four were played at Wrigley. In game 4 of the 1945 World Series, the Curse of the Billy Goat was allegedly laid upon the Cubs when P.K. Wrigley ejected Billy Sianis, who had come to game 4 with two box seat tickets, one for him and one for his goat. They paraded around for a few innings, but Wrigley demanded the goat leave the park due to its unpleasant odor. Upon his ejection, Mr. Sianis uttered, "the Cubs, they ain't gonna win no more." The Cubs lost game 4, lost the 1945 World Series, and have not been back since. It has also been said by many that Sianis put a "curse" on the Cubs, apparently preventing the team from making it back to (but not actually winning) the World Series. After losing the 1945 World Series, the Cubs finished with winning seasons the next two years, but those teams did not enter post-season play.

Recent history

Fall of '69

After over twenty years of futility, things were finally looking up in 1969, as skipper Leo Durocher's Cubs had built a substantial lead in the newly created National League East in August. They were led by All Star Ron Santo and eventual Hall Of Famers Ernie Banks, Ferguson Jenkins, and Billy Williams. Ken Holtzman pitched a no-hitter on August 19, and the division lead was 8½ games over the Cardinals and 9½ games over the New York Mets, but the Cubs played erratic baseball and lost key games against the Mets, ultimately losing the lead. Many superstitious fans attribute this collapse to an incident at Shea Stadium when a fan released a black cat onto the field, thereby further cursing the club. Others have stated the sheer number of day games that the Cubs had to play contributed to the disaster. (Lights for night games were not installed in Wrigley Field until 1988.) Chicago's summers are quite humid (85-90 degrees Fahrenheit on average), and playing in this heat day after day might have taken its toll). From August 14 through the end of the season, the Mets had an amazing 39-11 record, finishing with 100 wins and an 8 game lead over the second place Cubs, who slumped in September, going only 8-17 and finishing 92-70.

1984 heartbreak

After more than a dozen more subpar seasons, the 1984 Cubs made a midseason deal to acquire ace pitcher Rick Sutcliffe from Cleveland, who joined Scott Sanderson, Ron Cey and NL MVP Ryne Sandberg on a squad that ultimately tallied an NL best 96 victories, winning the NL East. In the NLCS the Cubbies won the first two games at Wrigley Field against the San Diego Padres. The Cubs needed to win only one game of the next three in San Diego to make it back to the World Series. After being beaten in game 3, the Cubs lost when dependable closer Lee Smith allowed a game-winning home run to Steve Garvey in the bottom of the 9th inning of Game 4. In Game 5 the Cubs took a 3-0 lead to the 6th inning, and a 3-2 lead into the 7th with Sutcliffe (who won the Cy Young Awardthat year) still on the mound, but he tired, and a critical error by Leon Durham, who watched a routine grounder go through his legs helped San Diego win the game and kept Chicago out of the 1984 World Series.

1989 NL East champions

In 1989, the first full season with night baseball at Wrigley Field, the Cubs were led by a core group of veterans in Sandberg, Sutcliffe and Andre Dawson, who were boosted by a crop of youngsters such as Mark Grace, Shawon Dunston, Greg Maddux and Rookie of the Year Jerome Walton. The Cubbies won the NL East once again that season winning 93 games. This time the Northsiders met the San Francisco Giants in the NLCS. After splitting the first two games at home, the Cubs headed to the Bay Area, where despite holding a lead at some point in each of the next three games, bullpen meltdowns and managerial blunders ultimately led to three straight losses. The Giants lost to "The Bash Brothers" and the Oakland A's in the famous "Earthquake Series".

1998 wild card

After the retirement of Sandberg and the trading of Dunston, the team needed to look elsewhere for help. In 1998 the Cubs signed outfielder Henry Rodriguez while Sammy Sosa responded with a 66 home run season. This effort, coupled with a Rookie of the Year season by Kerry Wood, won a down-to-the-wire Wild Card chase over San Fransisco, culminating with the Cubs beating the Giants in a one game playoff at Wrigley in which Gary Gaetti hit a game winning homer and propelled the Cubs into the postseason once again. They scored only six runs en route to being swept by Atlanta. The home run chase between Sosa, Mark McGwire, and Ken Griffey, Jr. generated a great deal of media coverage, and helped to bring in a new crop of fans as well as bringing back some fans who had been disillusioned by the 1994 strike.

2001 playoff push

Sosa had 64 homers and Jon Lieber won 20 games, while the club made a midseason deal for Fred McGriff (which was drawn out for nearly a month as McGriff debated waiving his no-trade clause) as the Northsiders led the wild card race by 2.5 games in early September, but the run died when Preston Wilson hit a three run walk off homer off of closer Tom "Flash" Gordon, which killed the team's momentum, and they failed to make another serious charge. The Cubs finished only 5 games behind both St. Louis and Houston.

2003 comeback

The Cubs had high expectations in 2002, but the squad played poorly, and the club responded hiring Dusty Baker and by making some major moves in '03. Most notably, they traded with the Pittsburgh Pirates for Aramis Ramirez, finally filling a gaping hole at third base, and rode dominant pitching as the Northsiders won their first division title in 14 years, and their NLDS victory over the Atlanta Braves was the team's first postseason series win since 1908. The Cubs then took a 3 games to 1 lead over the Florida Marlins. After being shut out in Game 5, Mark Prior and the Cubs took a 3-0 lead to the 8th inning of Game 6, when a now-infamous incident took place in which a fan, Steve Bartman, attempted to catch a foul ball off the bat of Luis Castillo, interfering with the potential catch for the second out by Moises Alou. Interference was not called on the play. Two batters later, Cubs shortstop Alex Gonzalez misplayed a potential inning ending double play, loading the bases, leading to a game-tying double by Derrek Lee. Florida scored 5 more runs, leading to a 8-3 Marlin victory. The Cubs were unable to win Game 7, despite sending Kerry Wood to the mound, and once again were left on the outside of the World Series looking in.

2004 letdown

In 2004, despite the return of Greg Maddux and a midseason deal for Nomar Garciaparra, misfortune struck the Cubs again. They led the Wild Card by 1.5 games on September 24, but Joe Borowski blew a save to the Mets, and the Cubs proceeded to drop 7 of their last 9 games and relinquished their lead to the Astros. Despite winning 89 games, this fallout was decidedly unlovable, as the Cubs traded superstar Sammy Sosa after he had left the season's final game early and then lied about it publicly. Sosa, already a controversial figure in the clubhouse after his corked-bat incident, alienated much of his fan base, the manager, (and the few teammates still on good terms with him) with this incident, possibly tarnished his place in Cubs' lore for years to come. The disappointing season saw fans become frustrated with the constant injuries to ace pitchers Mark Prior and Kerry Wood, and also led to the departure of popular commentator Steve Stone, who became increasingly critical of management and was verbally attacked by reliever Kent Mercker.

2007: Worst to first

After finishing with only 66 wins and 17.5 games out of first in 2006, the Northsiders re-tooled for 2007, signing Alfonso Soriano to the richest contract in Cub history and replacing skipper Dusty Baker with Lou Piniella. After a rough start, which included a brawl between Michael Barrett and Carlos Zambrano, the Cubs overcame the Milwaukee Brewers, who had led the division for most of the season, with an inspired stretch of baseball in June and July. Chicago ultimately clinched the NL Central despite having only 85 wins, but were again unable to come through in the NLDS, stranding over 30 baserunners in a three game sweep by the Arizona Diamondbacks. Controversy followed the team as Piniella was criticized for pulling Zambrano after the sixth inning of a pitchers duel with Brandon Webb, saying he was saving Zambrano for a potential Game 4.

Radio and television

As of 2007, the Cubs' flagship radio station was WGN, 720AM. With the recent end of the Pittsburgh Pirates' run on KDKA, this may now be the longest team-to-station relationship in MLB. Pat Hughes is the play-by-play announcer, along with color commentator Ron Santo and pre- and post-game host Cory Provus. Santo, a former Cubs star and a fan of the team, is known for his emotional highs and lows during games. One example of a "low" was his "Nooo! Nooo!" when Brant Brown dropped a fly ball in a key game in 1998.

The Chicago Cubs Radio Network is comprised of 45 stations in eleven states.

Cubs telecasts are split three ways: WGN (both the local station and the superstation), WCIU (a local independent station), and Comcast SportsNet. Len Kasper is the play-by-play announcer, and Bob Brenly, a former major league catcher and Arizona Diamondbacks manager, is the color commentator for the games. WGN also produces the games shown on WCIU; for those games, the score bug changes to "CubsNet." WGN and Comcast Sports Net each show an even number of Cubs and Sox games, while WCIU averages about 8 games per season per team. Occasionally, the Cubs are shown on the cable channel Comcast Sports Net+, when the usual CSN channel has a scheduling conflict. CSN+ is just the CSN game broadcast on a different cable channel from regular CSN, with the channel depending on the region (commonly CLTV). In addition, the club also produces its own print media, in the form of the Cubs' official magazine Vineline, which has eight annual issues and is in its third decade.

Jack and Harry

Two broadcasters have made their mark on the team. Jack Brickhouse manned the Cubs radio and especially the TV booth for parts of five decades, covering the games with a level of enthusiasm that often seemed unjustified by the team's poor performance on the field for many of those years. His trademark call "Hey Hey!" usually followed a home run or other spectacular play. That expression is spelled out in large letters vertically on both foul pole screens at Wrigley Field. "Whoo-boy!" and "Wheeee!" and "Oh, brother!" were among his other pet expressions. When he approached retirement age, he personally recommended his successor.

Harry Caray's stamp on the team is perhaps even deeper than that of Brickhouse, though his tenure was half as long. First, Caray had already become a well-known Chicago figure by broadcasting White Sox games for a decade, after having been a Cardinals icon for 25 years. Caray also had the benefit of being in the booth during the NL East title run in 1984, which was widely seen due to WGN's status as a cable-TV superstation. His trademark call of "Holy Cow!" and his enthusiastic singing of "Take me out to the ballgame" during the 7th inning stretch (as he had done with the White Sox) made Caray a fan favorite both locally and nationally. Harry occasionally had problems pronouncing names, to comic effect, such as his attempt at saying "Hector Villanueva" which was capture on WGN's memorial CD to Harry. He also continued his long-standing bit (dating back to the Cardinals years) of pronouncing names backwards. Caray had lively discussions with commentator Steve Stone, who was hand-picked by Harry himself, and producer Arne Harris. Caray often playfully quarreled with Stone over Stone's cigar and why Stone was single, while Stone would counter with poking fun at Harry being "under the influence." Stone disclosed in his book "Where's Harry" that most of this "arguing" was staged, and usually a ploy developed by Harry himself to add flavor to the broadcast. Additionally, Harry once did a commercial for Budweiser, dressed as a "Blues Brother" and parodying "Soul Man", singing "I'm a Cub fan, I'm a Bud man," while dancing with models dressed as ballgirls.

The Cubs still have a live singer, usually a celebrity, during the 7th inning stretch to honor Caray's memory. The most popular of these "guest conductors" is former Chicago Bears coach Mike Ditka, who returns annually and is popular for singing terribly. Caray is also honored with a statue located at the corner of Sheffield and Addison streets, and during the 1998 season, a patch with Caray's caricature and Brickhouse's trademark "Hey Hey" were worn on the players sleeves to honor the passing of both commentators within a span of a few months. Harry's popularity also led to his grandson Chip Caray joining the broadcast team in winter of 1997, shortly before Harry's death. Chip Caray worked the Cubs games alongside Stone until events that unfolded in 2004, when Stone became increasingly critical of management and players toward season's end. At one point, reliever Kent Mercker phoned the booth during a game and told Stone to "keep out of team business." Stone left the team, taking a position with Chicago-based WSCR. Chip Caray also left, joining his father Skip Caray on TBS, providing play-by-play for the Braves.

Miscellaneous

Championship drought

The Chicago Cubs have not won a World Series championship since 1908 and have not appeared in a Series since 1945, although they have a number of post-season appearances since the multi-tiered playoff system was developed. It is the longest title drought in all five of the major American professional sports leagues, which includes the NFL, the NBA, the MLS/MISL and the NHL, as well as, of course, Major League Baseball. Playful theories try to blame the team's futility on alleged supernatural intervention, such as the Curse of the Billy Goat from 1945, citing the Leon Durham error of 1984 and the Bartman incident in 2003 as "evidence" of a curse. More practical theories include the too-cozy dimensions of Wrigley Field; the physical toll from the summer heat (discussed in the 1977 book Stuck on the Cubs; and evidenced by the plentiful "june swoons" (late season collapses) of 1977, 1979, 1985, and 1999, among others. Finally, the most obvious candidate for this happenstance is the club's poor front office decisions.

Since the other two "cursed" teams, the Red Sox and the crosstown White Sox, broke their lengthy World Series droughts in 2004 and 2005 respectively, and with the Cubs now at the 100th anniversary of their last Series win, special attention has been drawn to the 2008 season.

Wrigley Field and Wrigleyville

The Cubs have played their home games at Wrigley Field, also known as "The Friendly Confines" since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales. The Cubs also shared the park with the Chicago Bears of the NFL for many years. The ballpark includes a manual scoreboard, ivy-covered brick walls, and relatively small dimensions.

Located in the residential neighborhood of Lakeview, Wrigley Field sits on an irregular block bounded by Clark and Addison Streets and Waveland and Sheffield Avenues. The area surrounding the ballpark is typically referred to as Wrigleyville, though it is a sub-section of Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. There is a dense collection of bars and nightclubs in the area, most with baseball inspired themes, including Harry Caray's, Murphy's Bleachers, The Billy Goat Tavern and Sluggers. On gamedays, many residents rent out their yards and driveways during games to people looking for a parking spot. Though many Wrigleyville homeowners have seen their property values skyrocket, most, along with Mayor Richard M. Daley (a die-hard White Sox fan), still oppose the teams quest to play more night games and stadium expansion. Average attendance at games has also skyrocketed, as annual ticket sales have more than doubled, with attendance rising from 1.4 million in 1983 to nearly 3.2 million in 2004.

"White flag time at Wrigley!"

The term "White flag time at Wrigley!" basically means the Cubs have won. In the days before the internet, and before most homes had televisions, fans had little access to finding out if the Cubs had won or lost, since the games were played during the day and most people were either at work or school at this time. PK Wrigley had a white flag with a blue "W" on it, which represented the word 'Win' flown over the park to let fans know that there was a positive outcome to that day's game, instead of having to wait until the next morning to read the newspapers. That tradition continues to this day, and has evolved to fans carrying the flags to both home and away games, and displaying them after a Cub win. The flags have become more and more popular each season since 1998, and are now even sold at the ballpark.

Mascots

The official Cub mascot is a young bear cub, which has gone through various transformations thru the years. The Cubs have no official physical mascot, though a man in a 'polar bear' looking outfit, called "The Beeman" (or Bearman, B-man), which was not very popular with the fans, was employed by the club briefly in the early 1990s. However, the Cubs' un-official mascot is a formerly homeless man named Ronnie Wickers, who goes by the nickname of "Ronnie Woo Woo." Wickers is not employed by the team, but is seen daily at games and outside the park, dressed in full uniform, usually with a hula hoop or jump rope. Wickers is the second fan to reach this status, the first being "Gary The Drunk" in the 1980s through mid 90s, and was featured in Steve Stone's book "Where's Harry?" Wickers, however, is much more popular. He is known for his trademark yelling, for example "Mark.... Wooo! Grace.... Wooo!," and has been adopted by fans as a part of the culture at Wrigley Field. Wickers has gained national fame, and has appeared on the Howard Stern and Mancow radio programs.

Bleacher Bums

The "Bleacher Bums" is a name given to fans, may of whom are viscious heclkers, who sit in the bleacher section at Wrigley Field. Initially, the group was called "bums" because it referred to a group of fans who were at most games, and since those games were all day games, it was assumed they did not work. Many of those fans were, and are still, students at nearby colleges, such as DePaul University. A classic stereotype is that this group of fans is too drunk to pay attention to games. A broadway play, starring Joe Mantegna, Dennis Farina, Dennis Franz, and Jim Belushi ran for years and was based on a group of Cub fans who frequented the club's games. The group was started in the 1970's by Mike Murphy, who is currently a radio host on Chicago-based WSCR. The current group is headed by Derek Schaul.

Spring training

The Cubs spring training facuility is located in Mesa, Arizona, where they play in the Cactus League. The club plays it's games at HoHoKam Park, the name of which, ironically, is literally translated from Native American as "those who vanished". The park seats just under 13,000, and they annually sell out most of their games both at home and on the road. The Northsiders have called Mesa thier spring home for most seasons since 1952. In addition to Mesa, the club has held spring training in a variety of places, including The University of Illinois, Indiana State University, Tampa, Florida, Scottsdale, Arizona, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Catalina Island, California, which is a small island off the coast of Los Angeles which was purchased by the Wrigley family in 1919 as a "paradise resort."

See also

• History of the Chicago Cubs
• Chicago Cubs futility theories
• Chicago Cubs team records
• Chicago Tribune
• WGN TV Channel 9/WGN Radio 720 AM
• Sam Zell
• Curse of the Billy Goat
• Steve Bartman
• Major League Baseball franchise post-season droughts
• Grant DePorter
• Lee Elia
• Major North American professional sports teams

Current roster

Retired numbers

The Cubs retired numbers are written on pinstriped flags which fly on the stadium's foul poles.

• 10 Ron Santo, 3B, 1960-73
• 14 Ernie Banks, SS-1B, 1953-71; Coach 1967-73
• 23 Ryne Sandberg, 2B, 1982-94, 1996-97
• 26 Billy Williams, OF, 1959-74; Coach 1980-82, 1986-87, 1992-2001
• 42 Jackie Robinson (retired throughout the major leagues)

Reserved numbers

• 31 - Upon signing with the Cubs prior to the 2007 season, Ted Lilly agreed to wear uniform number 30 rather than his usual 31 due to its imminent retirement. It is unannounced if 31 would be retired in the name of Ferguson Jenkins, Greg Maddux, or both.

Minor league affiliations

• AAA: Iowa Cubs, Pacific Coast League
• AA: Tennessee Smokies, Southern League
• Advanced A: Daytona Cubs, Florida State League
• A: Peoria Chiefs, Midwest League
• Short A: Boise Hawks, Northwest League
• Rookie: AZL Cubs, Arizona League
• Rookie: VSL Cubbies, Venezuelan Summer League

Season-by-season results

This is a partial list of the last five seasons completed by the Cubs. For the full season-by-season history, see Chicago Cubs seasons.
For updates on current season, see 2008 Chicago Cubs season.

Championships

Notes

1. ESPN.com, Prominent names mentioned as possible Cubs' buyers Retrieved on April 2, 2007
2. "Opening of the Base Ball Campaign at St. Louis". Chicago Tribune. 1870-04-30. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
3. "Chicago Summer Temperature Rankings", NOAA's National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office, September 7, 2006.
4. "Woo Who", Dave Hoekstra, Chicago Sun-Times, April 1, 2005.
5. Muskat, Carrie (2006-12-15). "Cubs welcome Lilly to Chicago" (HTML). MLB.com. MLB.com. Retrieved 2007-07-30. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links

• Chicago Cubs official web site
• Chicago Sun-Times Cubs News
• Chicago Tribune Cubs News

Further reading

• Murphy, Cait (2007). "Crazy '08: How a Cast of Cranks, Rogues, Boneheads, and Magnates Created the Greatest Year in Baseball History." New York, NY: Smithsonian Books. ISBN 978-0-06-088937-1

• Wright, Marshall (2000). The National Association of Base Ball Players, 1857-1870. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co. ISBN 0-7864-0779-4

Template:MLB Chicago Cubs franchise

v t e Sports teams based in the Chicago metropolitan area
Baseball	MLB Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox AA Chicago Dogs Gary SouthShore RailCats Kane County Cougars FL Joliet Slammers Schaumburg Boomers Windy City ThunderBolts NorL Crestwood Panthers DuPage County Hounds Joliet Generals Northwest Indiana Oilmen Southland Vikings
Basketball	NBA Chicago Bulls WNBA Chicago Sky G League Windy City Bulls ABA Chicago Fury Chicago Steam Libertyville Vipers
Esports	CDL OpTic Chicago
Football	NFL Chicago Bears
Hockey	NHL Chicago Blackhawks AHL Chicago Wolves USHL Chicago Steel
Lacrosse	CILL Chicago Outlaws MCLC Chicago Lacrosse Club Chitown Lacrosse Club Lincoln Park Lacrosse Club Windy City Lacrosse Club
Roller derby	USARS Chicago Red Hots WFTDA Chicago Outfit Roller Derby Windy City Rollers
Rugby	MLR Chicago Hounds USAR Chicago Griffins RFC Chicago Lions RFC
Soccer	MLS Chicago Fire FC MLSNP Chicago Fire FC II USL2 Chicago City SC USLW Chicago City SC NWSL Chicago Red Stars
Indoor soccer	M2 Chicago Mustangs
Australian rules football	USAFL Chicago Swans
Ultimate	UFA Chicago Union
Team tennis	WTT Chicago Smash
College athletics (NCAA Division I)	Chicago State Cougars DePaul Blue Demons Loyola Ramblers Northern Illinois Huskies Northwestern Wildcats UIC Flames Valparaiso Beacons
College athletics (NCAA Division II)	Lewis Flyers Parkside Rangers Purdue-Northwest Pride Roosevelt Lakers
College athletics (NCAA Division III)	Aurora Spartans Benedictine Eagles Carthage Firebirds Chicago Maroons Concordia Cougars Dominican Stars Elmhurst Bluejays Illinois Tech Scarlet Hawks Lake Forest Foresters North Central Cardinals North Park Vikings Wheaton Thunder
College athletics (NAIA)	CCSJ Crimson Wave Governors State Jaguars IU Northwest Redhawks Judson Eagles Olivet Nazarene Tigers St. Francis Fighting Saints Saint Xavier Cougars Trinity Christian Trolls

v t e Nexstar Media Group
sorted by primary channel network affiliations
ABC	KAMC KCAU-TV KMID KODE-TV KSVI KTKA-TV KTVX WATE-TV WAWV-TV WBOY-TV WDHN WEHT WGNO WHTM-TV WIVT WJBF WJET-TV WJHL-TV WKRN-TV WLAJ WMBB WOTV WRIC-TV WSYR-TV WTEN WTNH WTRF-TV WTVO WUTR WVNY WWTI WYTV
CBS	KELO-TV / KCLO-TV / KDLO-TV / KPLO-TV KGPE KLAS-TV KLBK-TV KLFY-TV KLST KOIN KOLR KREX-TV / KREY-TV KRQE / KBIM-TV / KREZ-TV KTAB-TV KVEO-TV KXMB-TV / KXMC-TV / KXMD-TV / KXMA-TV WANE-TV WBTW WCIA WFRV-TV WHBF-TV WHNT-TV WHLT WIAT WIVB-TV WJHL-TV WJTV WKBN-TV WKRG-TV WLNS-TV WMBD-TV WNCN WNCT-TV WOWK-TV WPRI-TV WRBL WREG-TV WROC-TV WSPA-TV WTAJ-TV WTRF-TV WTTV / WTTK WVNS-TV WYOU
The CW (O&O)	KASN KAUT-TV KAZT-TV / KAZT-CD KELO-TV / KCLO-TV / KDLO-TV / KPLO-TV KDAF KGCW KGET-TV KHON-TV / KHAW-TV / KAII-TV KIAH KLFY-TV KNVA KPLR-TV KRCW-TV KRON-TV KSVI KTKA-TV KTLA KUCW KWBQ / KRWB-TV KWGN-TV KXMB-TV / KXMC-TV / KXMD-TV / KXMA-TV KXTU-LD WBDT WBRL-CD WCBD-TV WDCW WFNA WFXV WGN-TV WHDF WHLT WJTV WLAJ WMBB WNAC-TV WNCT-TV WNLO WNOL-TV WOTV WPIX WPHL-TV WSAV-TV WTTA WTVW WVBT WWCW WWLP / WFXQ-CD WWTI WYCW
Fox	KARD KCIT KDVR / KFCT KFQX KFTA-TV KFXK-TV KHON-TV / KHAW-TV / KAII-TV KHMT KJTL KLJB KLRT-TV KMSS-TV KPEJ-TV KRBK KRQE / KBIM-TV / KREZ-TV KSWB-TV KTMJ-CD KTVI KTXL KWKT-TV KXRM-TV WDAF-TV WDKY-TV WFFF-TV WFXP WFXR WFXV WGHP WGMB-TV WJKT WJZY WJW WLAX / WEUX WNAC-TV WNTZ-TV WQRF-TV WVBT WVNS-TV WXIN WXXA-TV WYFX-LD WYZZ-TV
MyNetworkTV	KARZ-TV KASY-TV KBVO / KBVO-CD KCPN-LD KELO-TV / KDLO-TV / KPLO-TV KGJT-CD KHII-TV / KGMD-TV / KGMV KJBO-LD KOZL-TV KSHV-TV KTPN-LD KXNW KYLE-TV WBTW WCIX WCTX WJMN-TV WMYT-TV WNTZ-TV WPNY-LD WPRI-TV WSAV-TV WSNN-LD WTRF-TV WTVO WVNS-TV WXSP-CD WYTV-DT2
NBC	KAMR-TV KARK-TV KETK-TV KFDX-TV KFOR-TV KGET-TV KNWA-TV KRBC-TV KSAN-TV KSEE KSNF KSNT KSNW / KSNC / KSNG / KSNK / KSNL-LD KTAL-TV KTSM-TV KTVE KVEO-TV KXAN-TV WAVY-TV WBGH-CD WBOY-TV WBRE-TV WCBD-TV WCMH-TV WDTN WETM-TV WFLA-TV WHO-DT WOOD-TV WSAV-TV WTWO WVLA-TV WWLP / WFXQ-CD
Other stations	Antenna TV KGBT-TV Telemundo KKEY-LP KTAB-TV Independent KUSI-TV KZUP-CD WDVM AM Radio WGN
TV channels	Broadcast Antenna TV The CW (75%) Rewind TV Cable Cooking Channel (30%) Food Network (30%) NewsNation
TV programs	Bozo, Gar and Ray: WGN TV Classics Banfield The Donlon Report Eye Opener KTLA Morning News NewsFix NewsNation Prime WGN Morning News WGN Sports Yule Log
Other assets	Border Report The Hill Zap2it TV by the Numbers TV CMS company Lakana LIN Digital Online ad company Yashi Former assets CLTV
Acquisitions	Communications Corporation of America Grant Broadcasting Media General LIN Media New Vision Television Park Communications Spartan Communications Young Broadcasting Newport Television Tribune Media Tribune Broadcasting Local TV LLC Renaissance Broadcasting WGN America West Virginia Media Holdings
Nexstar operates these stations under an SSA. These stations broadcast these networks on their digital subchannels.

• Nexstar Media Group
• Sports in Chicago
• Chicago Cubs
• Major League Baseball teams
• Tribune Company subsidiaries
• Sports clubs established in 1876
• Cactus League
• Baseball teams in Illinois