Chicago

Cubs Countdown: 1 Day to Opening Day

The Cubs are one day away from defending a World Series title for the first time in 109 years

While it may not feel like baseball season yet, Opening Day is rapidly approaching for the defending World Series champion Chicago Cubs, and Sunday is the big day as the first contest of the season is just one day away.

With just one day until the regular season begins, our countdown wraps up as we help fans get pumped up for the coming year.

1 in Cubs History

20 different players have worn the number one for the Cubs over the years, with Woody English being the first one to have that distinction. Players like Dave Martinez, Larry Bowa, and Kosuke Fukudome have worn the digit over the years as well, with Cody Ransom serving as the last player to wear the uniform number for the Cubs back in 2013.

Perhaps the most famous player to wear the number was Jose Cardenal, who holds the unique distinction of being former First Lady Michelle Obama’s favorite player on the Cubs in the 1970’s. Cardenal was a skilled player, clubbing 61 home runs and stealing 129 bases for the Cubs during his six seasons in Chicago, but he also had some “unique” moments, including his infamous choice to sit out on Opening Day in 1974 because one of his eyelids was stuck open.

In terms of historical significance for the number one, there’s a lot of different directions a fan could go. One could go with the number of times that the Cubs have won a National League Championship series, with 2016 being their first triumph in that round after losing three straight times in 1984, 1989, and 2003.

One could also go with the number of winner-take-all Game 7’s that the Cubs have won, which occurred when they beat the Cleveland Indians in the 2016 World Series. Finally, there is the fact that now, after 100 years of trying, the Cubs have finally won their very first World Series as tenants at Wrigley Field.

Notable “1’s” for the 2016 Cubs

1 - Four different Cubs players only registered one run batted in last season, and three of them were pitchers as Travis Wood, Mike Montgomery, and Trevor Cahill each only had a single RBI. Only one position player accomplished that feat, as Munenori Kawaski only registered one in 21 at-bats for the Cubs.

1 – Only one Cubs pitcher threw more than 200 innings during the 2016 regular season, as Jon Lester threw 202 innings and posted an excellent 2.44 ERA to help pace the Cubs’ pitching staff.

1 – Only one starting pitcher for the Cubs earned a win in the NLDS: Lester. He threw eight innings and struck out five batters to help lead the Cubs to a victory in his lone start of the series.

1 – The number of Cubs pitchers that struck out more than 10 batters in the NLCS win over the Los Angeles Dodgers: Kyle Hendricks, who fanned 11 batters in 12 innings of work.

1 – The number of career saves that Mike Montgomery has after he secured the save in Game 7 of the World Series for the Cubs.

1 – The number of Cubs that had 20 or more hits in the postseason. Surprisingly lead-off hitter extraordinaire Dexter Fowler, NLDS hero Javier Baez, and slugger Anthony Rizzo didn’t hit that number. Only Kris Bryant did, as he registered exactly 20 hits, eight of which went for extra-bases.

Did You Know?

Instead of sticking with one record or one factoid, we thought it might be fun to revisit a couple of fun factoids about National League MVP Kris Bryant.

In 2016, Bryant became the first Cubs player to hit 30 or more home runs and score 100 or more runs in a single season before the age of 25.

Bryant also became the first player in Major League history to hit three home runs and two doubles in the same game, when he did it against the Cincinnati Reds. In that same game, Bryant became the youngest Cubs player to ever hit three home runs in a game, beating Ernie Banks by 10 days.

Finally, Bryant became the first player in Cubs history to win a Rookie of the Year award and an MVP award in back-to-back seasons, and he’s just the fourth player in MLB history to achieve that feat.

Contact Us