The first Cubs bash

Written by: Bill Ivie on 18th March 2009

The first Cubs bash | read this item

This may well be the very first article aimed to bash the baby bears of the northside of Chicago.

I would apologize ahead of time, but Hooks warned you it was coming and, quite frankly, this is the Cardinals page here on BaseballDigest.com, do you seriously expect anything less?

Does this team have no class?

I clicked on the news story when I seen it. The Chicago Cubs are retiring a number. Pretty big news from a team that has had it’s share of great players come through the organization. Big news from an ballclub that has only retired 4 numbers previously. So who joins Numbers 10, 14, 23, and 26 (That’s Ron Santo, Ernie Banks, Ryne Sandberg and Billy Williams, if you’re scoring at home)? Number 31 will be raised to the rafters later this season. And number 31 belongs to Greg Maddux…..and Ferguson Jenkins.

Nope, you read that right. The Cubs will retire one number for two players this season. Now, I may be wrong, but I think this is a first. I’m not trying to take anything away from either pitcher here, either. Greg Maddux and Ferguson Jenkins are both amazing competitors and ballplayers. Jenkins is in the Hall Of Fame. Maddux is most certainly headed that way. But, honestly, neither player gets to lay claim to this number?

Jenkins retired from Major League Baseball in 1984, two years prior to the arrival of Greg Maddux. He was elected to Cooperstown in 1991 and Maddux left the northsiders after the following season, landing in Atlanta for his biggest years of his career.

The organization had the opportunity for the classy move in 1993 and beyond. They could have retired the number in the name of Jenkins then. Perhaps they got caught up in what has become their motto for their existence, “Wait until next year”. Now, while trying to honor a great pitcher, they have the PR nightmare of possibly insulting another.

It’s amazing, they can’t even get this right.

Maybe the line in Anchorman should have been “Stay classy CHICAGO”. Class indeed.

Topics: Chicago Cubs, Cubs Suck, Ferguson Jenkins, Greg Maddux, Hall of Fame

gibby45 says:

March 19, 2009 at 5:18 pm

the cubs,,they can’t do ANYTHING right except blow it.They should of retired it for jenkins a long time ago,,and Maddux???? What did he do for Chicago other than make them look idiots for letting yet another hall of famer get away

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