Chicago Cubs history

Chicago Cubs history from the authoritative Sports Encyclopedia site:

1876: The Chicago White Stockings become one of eight charter members of the National League led by their president William A. Hulbert, who was also the owner of the Chicago club. A.G. Spalding is the manager when the team plays its first game in the history of the Chicago National League Ball Club that takes place on April 25. Spalding doubles as the pitcher and records the first NL shutout, a 4-0 win over Louisville. The first run in team history is scored by center fielder Paul Hines on a throwing error in the second inning. The White Stockings go on to win the inaugural National League Championship with a 52-14 record.

1877: The loss of several key players from the Championship team, contributes to the White Stockings dropping to 5th Place with a 26-33 record. 1878: The White Stockings finish in 4th place with a record of 30-30 record.1879: The White Stockings get off to a terrible 5-12 start when their star Cap Anson assumes the managerial duties away from Silver Flint. Under Anson the White Stockings would play much better winning 41 of 62 games on the way to a 4th place finish with a 46-33 record.1880: The White Stockings dominate the NL winning 67 of 84 games and to capture the League's Championship by 15 games.1881: The White Stockings cruise to their second straight NL Championship with a 56-28 record winning comfortably by 9 games.1882: The White Stockings become the first team to win 3 straight NL Championships with a record of 55-29, holding off the Providence Grays by 4 games.

1883: The White Stockings, who finish with a 59-35 record, see their championship reign ends, as Boston Red Stockings beat them out by 4 games.1884: 3B Ned Williamson becomes the first player to hit three home runs in a single game, vs. Detroit. However the White Stockings finish a distant 4th with a 62-50 record. 1885: The White Stockings win their 5 NL pennant in the 10-year history of the National League holding off the New York Giants by 2 games, with an 87-25 record. The White Stocking would go on to play in an early version of the World Series against the rival American Association's St. Louis Brown Stockings, the 2 teams would split 6 games and tie another.1886: The White Stockings win the NL Championship again with a 90-34 record, and would go on to play in the 3rd version of the 19th century World Series losing 4 of 6 games to the American Association's St. Louis Brown Stockings.1887: The White Stockings drive for a 3rd Straight NL Championship ends in disappointment, as the club finishes 3rd with a 71-50 record, six and half games out of first.

1888: The White Stockings continue to be among the best teams in the National League as they finish in 2nd Place with a solid 77-58 record.1889: The White Stockings slip a little in the standings finishing in 3rd place with a mediocre 67-65 record.1890: The White Stockings rebound off a mediocre season and challenge all season for first place falling just 6 games short with a record of 84-53.1891: The White Stockings battle down to the final week of the season before ending up 3 and half games short of 1st place with a record of 82-53.1892: The NL experiments with a split season as the White Stockings are non factor in either race finishing with a disappointing combined record of 70-76.1893: The White Stockings struggles continue as they finish in 9th place with a poor record of 56-71.1894: The team changes its nickname to Colts, as their struggles continue during an awful 57-75 season.

1895: After 4 straight losing seasons the Colts end their struggles by finishing in 4th place with a 72-58 record.1896: The Colts are a non factor in the race for first place as they put up a solid 71-57 record while finishing in 5th place.1897: During a June 29th game against Louisville the Colts exploded for 36 runs setting a new Major League Record. However the 36-run explosion ends up being the sole highlight of a 59-73 season that also sees Cap Anson, who is regarded as the greatest player of the 19th Century retires at the age of 45. Anson whose playing career began in the old National Association in 1871 would go on to be on original member of the Chicago franchise. He would also fill the role of manager for a large chuck of his playing career. 1898: Without Anson to guide them the team is dubbed the Orphans by the Chicago Papers. The Orphans end up doing all right fending for themselves finishing with an 85-65 record.1899: The Orphans finish in 8th place, despite posting a winning record of 75-73.

1900: The Orphans start the 20th Century on the wrong foot finishing in 5th place with a record of 65-75.1901: The Orphans struggle again falling to 6th place with a miserable record of 53-86.1902: The Chicago Daily News becomes first-known entity to pen "Cubs" nickname as team moniker. The nickname refers to the amount of young players the team has. September 15 the famous double play combination of Joe Tinker, Johnny Evers, and Frank Chance records its first double play in 6-3 win vs. Reds. The young team would go on to finish in 5th place with a 68-69 record.1903: The young Cubs begin to show some promise as they are in the race all season before finishing 8 games out of first while placing 3rd with a record of 82-56.1904: The Cubs continue to improve as they finish in 2nd Place with a solid record of 93-60.

1905: The Cubs continue to be on the fringe of greatness as they finish in 3rd place with a solid record of 92-61.1906: The Cubs win a Major League record 116 games, enroot to taking the National League Championship by a comfortable 20 games. The Cubs would advance to the World Series where they would take on the cross-town White Sox. Alternating games between the Westside home of the Cubs, and the Southside home of the Sox, the Cubs are upset by a weak hitting White Sox team dubbed "The hitless wonders", by the Chicago papers. Neither team won a home game until the White Sox closed out the series in Game 6 with an 8-3 win.1907: The Cubs win 110 games on the way to cruising to their second straight World Series appearance. This time the Cubs World Series opponent was the Detroit Tigers, who were led by a young Ty Cobb. Trailing 3-2 in Game 1 the Cubs would rally to send the game to extra innings where darkness eventually prevailed, as the clubs walked away with a 3-3 tie. From there it would be a cake walk for the Cubs, as the team from Chicago went on to sweep the next 4 games holding the Tigers to a combined 3 runs.

1908: In one of baseball's classic pennant races the New York Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs battle down to the finals days of the season with NL Championship up for grabs. The Giants appear to win the pennant when Fred Merkle hits a dramatic game winning HR against the Cubs. However, due to fans flooding the field, Merkle is unable to circle the bases. A fiasco ensues where the Cubs try to tag 2nd Base with every baseball they could find. Not knowing what to do the NL decides to replay the game and the Cubs, would win the game which would end up deciding the pennant. With a 99-65 record the Cubs finished 1 game ahead of the Giants and Pirates. The Cubs would go on to face the Detroit Tigers for the 2nd Straight years in the World Series. Trailing 6-5 in the opener the Cubs would rally on 6 straight hits to claim a 10-6 victory. Game 2 would be a pitcher's duel until the 8th Inning before the Cubs exploded for 6 runs in the 8th Inning to take a 2-0 series lead. After the Tigers won Game 3, the Cubs would win the final 2 games shutting out the Tigers twice to become the first team ever to win 2 consecutive World Series. Little did anyone know at the time that this would be the last World Series the Cubs would win in the 20th Century.

1909: Despite finishing with a 104-49 record, the Cubs Championship reign ends as the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Cubs by six, and half games. 1910: The Cubs win their fourth National League pennant in five seasons, wining 104 games and capturing the flag by 13 games. However, the Cubs would fall quickly in the World Series losing 4 straight to the Philadelphia Athletics.1911: Heinie Zimmerman tallies a Cubs record 9 RBIs in 20-2 win against the Boston Braves. The Cubs would go on to finish in 2nd Place with a 92-62 record.1912: The Cubs slip to 3rd place but surpass 90 wins again posting a record of 91-59.1913: Johnny Evers takes over as Manager from Franck Chance as the Cubs finish in 3rd place despite a solid 88-65 record.

1914: The Cubs continue to slide in the standings as they finish in 4th place with a mediocre 78-76 record.1915: Zip Zabel pitches a record 18.1 relief innings in a 19-inning 4-3 win over the Brooklyn Dodgers. However the Cubs would go on to finish in 5th Place with a disappointing 73-80 record. 1916: Charles Weeghman and 9 investors purchase the Cubs from Charles Taft. Three months later, on April 20th, the Cubs beat the Reds, 7-6, in the first NL game at Weeghman Park, which would later be renamed Cubs Park in 1920 and eventually Wrigley Field in 1926. The Cubs first season at Clark and Addison streets would not be a good one as the team finished in 5th with a 67-86 record. 1917: Cubs Hippo Vaughn combines with the Reds Fred Toney for baseball's only 9-inning double no-hit game, eventually the game is won by the Cincinnati Reds 1-0 in 10th inning. The Cubs would go on to post their 3rd straight losing season as they finish in 5th pace with a record of 74-80.

1918: With an 84-45 record, the Cubs win the NL pennant by 10 and half games. In the aftermath of the United States' entry into World War I in 1917, a U.S. government edict called for the end of major-league baseball's 1918 regular season by Labor Day and the playing of the World Series immediately thereafter. Accordingly, the 1918 Series was a late-summer classic that ran from September 5 through September 11. After being shutdown by Babe Ruth and the Boston Red Sox the Cubs bounced back to win Game 2 behind the pitching of Lefty Tyler. After the Sox claimed Game 3, the Cubs fell behind 3-1 in the series as Babe Ruth was a one-man wrecking crew in a 3-2 victory, in which Ruth batted 6th and delivered the big hit, a two-run triple in the fourth inning. The Cubs would win Game 5, but the Sox would go on to claim the series in 6 games.1919: The Cubs finish in 3rd place as they post a respectable record of 75-65.1920: After 2 straight solid seasons the Cubs struggle all season on the way to finishing in 5th place with a record of 75-79.1921: The Cubs struggle all season and finish in 7th place with a horrid record of 64-89.

1922: The Cubs post a winning record of 80-74 but finish in the middle of the pack in the National League again.1923: The Cubs improve slightly as they finish in 4th place with a record of 83-71.1924: The Cubs continue to remain on the fringe of the pennant race as they finish in 4th place again with a record of 81-72.1925: April 14th with Quin Ryan at the mike, WGN Radio broadcasts its first regular-season Cubs game, as Chicago defeats the Pittsburgh Pirates by an 8-2. However, the season would not be as successful as the Cubs fell into last place with a 68-86 record.1926: The Cubs rebound off their last pace season by climbing back to 4th place with a record of 82-72.1927: A second deck is added to Wrigley Field increasing capacity to 40,000, as the Cubs draw over a million fans for the first time ever. The Cubs would go on to finish in 4th place with a solid 85-68 record.

1928: The Cubs are part of an exciting 3-team race for the National League Pennant. The Cubs would end up finishing 4 games out of 1st place in 3rd with a 91-63 record.1929: After falling 4 games short in 1928 the Cubs would not be denied in 1929, with a 98-54 record the Cubs win the National League pennant by more than 10 games, as nearly 1.5 million people pack Wrigley Field to marvel at the hitting exploits of future Hall of Famers Rogers Hornsby (the year's NL MVP), Hack Wilson, Gabby Hartnett and Kiki Cuyler. In the first World Series played at Wrigley Field the Cubs faced the Philadelphia Athletics. After losing the first 2 games at home the Cubs rebounded to take Game 3 in Philadelphia and looked well on their way to evening the series at 2 with an 8-0 lead in Game 4. However, the A's would rally and would stun the Cubs by scoring 10 runs in the 7th Inning to take a commanding 3-1 series lead. The Cubs would not recover losing Game 5 to close out the series.

1930: Outfielder Hack Wilson puts together one of the greatest hitting seasons in baseball history, pounding 56 homers and driving in a single season record 191 RBI. However, the Cubs would fall 2 games short of their quest for a return trip to the World Series with a 90-64 record.1931: The Cubs continue to be one of the top teams in the national League as they finish in 3rd place with a solid record of 84-70.1932: In the same year the Cubs become the final Major League team to add numbers to their uniforms, manager Charlie Grimm leads the Cubs to the National League pennant with a 90-64 record. The Cubs face the vaunted New York Yankees in the World Series, and would end up being swept in 4 straight games. However, one moment stands as one of the biggest debates in World Series history. Did Babe Ruth call his shot? In the 5th inning of Game 3 at Wrigley Field, the Babe seemed to gesture to CF before smashing a majestic homer over the CF wall. While the debate on weather he called his shot will range on forever, it just served to build on the Babe's legend.

1933: The Cubs attempt for a return trip to the Fall Classic ends in vein with an 86-68 record only good for 3rd place in the NL.1934: The Cubs fall 8 games short of the World Series as they finish in 3rd place with a solid record of 86-65.1935: The Cubs use an incredible 21 game winning streak to overtake the St. Louis Cardinals for the NL Pennant with a 100-54 record. In the World Series the Cubs would face the Detroit Tigers. After winning Game 1 the Cubs, would see the Tigers take the next 3 even after losing star 1B Hank Greenberg with a broken wrist. After the Cubs won Game 5 to send the series back to Detroit. With the game tied 3-3 in the 9th inning of Game 6 Hack Wilson led off with a triple, but Tigers pitching would freeze him there, and the Tigers would go on to win the game ands the series in the bottom of the 9th.1936: The Cubs fall just 5 games short in their quest to get back in the World Series as they post a record of 87-67 while finishing in 2nd place.

1937: Bill Veeck is hired and, plants the now-famous ivy on the outfield wall. That same year, the bleachers are constructed and a new scoreboard is installed, both of which have remained virtually untouched over the years. The Cubs would go on to finish 3 games out of first with a 93-61 record.1938: One of the most dramatic moments in team history occurs when catcher-manager Gabby Hartnett hits the legendary "Homer in the Gloamin'" at Wrigley Field. Hartnett's round-tripper off Pittsburgh Pirate Mace Brown in a near dark Wrigley Field gives the Cubs their third NL pennant of the decade with an 89-63 record. However, the Cubs would be overmatched in the World Series as they were swept by the New York Yankees for the 2nd time in 6 years. 1939: The Cubs close out a successful decade by finishing in 4th place with a solid record of 84-70.1940: The Cubs see a string of 14 straight winning seasons come to an end as they finish in 5th pace with a record of 75-79.1941: The Cubs finish in 6th pace with a record of 70-84. Following the season the Cubs begin plans to add light to Wrigley Field. However, after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, P.K. Wrigley donates the lighting equipment that he had recently purchased to the War Department in 1941.

1942: The Cubs struggles continue as they post their 3rd straight losing season finishing in 6th place with a record of 68-86.1943: With a number of baseball's top stars fighting in World War II the Cubs continue to struggle as they finish in 5th place with a record of 74-79.1944: The Cubs get off to a miserable start losing 9 of their first 10 games when Manager Jimmie Wilson is fired. Under new Manager Charlie Grimm the Cubs would finish the season strong posting a 75-78 record on the season.1945: The Cubs make their final World Series appearance of the 20th century by posting a 98-56 record. In the World Series the Cubs would face the Detroit Tigers for the 4th times. The Cubs get off to a promising start when Hank Borowy pitches the Cubs to a 9-0 shutout win in Game 1. The Tigers would bounce back to take Game 2, as the series shifted to Wrigley. The Cubs would use another standout pitching performance as Claude Passeau tossed a one-hitter in Game 3 to retake the series lead, but after the Tigers won the next 2 games the Cubs faced a 3-2 series deficit heading back to Detroit. In Game 6 OF Stan Hack reaches safely in 6 of 7 plate appearances and drives in winning run in 12th inning as Cubs beat Tigers 8-7 to force World Series Game 7. However the Cubs would fall losing 9-3 in what would be their final World Series game of the century.

1946: The Cubs follow up their trip to the World Series by finishing in 3rd place with a solid record of 82-71.1947: On May 18th the largest crown in Wrigley Field history comes to see Jackie Robinson's first game in Chicago. The Cubs would lose to Robinson's Brooklyn Dodgers 4-2. The Cubs would go on to finish 6th place that season with a 69-85 record.1948: A preseason exhibition game against the cross-town White Sox on April 16th is the setting for the Cubs debut on WGN-TV, as Jack Brickhouse broadcasts a 4-1 White Sox win at Wrigley Field. The Cubs would go on to finish in last place with a 64-90 record.1949: The Cubs finish in last pace for the second straight season as they post a record of 61-93.1950: The Cubs struggles continue as they finish in 7th place with a record of 64-89.1951: The Cubs finish in last place for the 3rd time in 4 years as they post a miserable 62-92 record.1952: OF Hank Sauer wins the NL Most Valuable Player award after he hit a major league leading 37 home runs and 121 RBI. With Sauer's help the Cubs climb out of the cellar and finish 5th with a 77-77 record.1953: In a season that sees the debut of Ernie Banks the Cubs fall to 7th place with a 65-89 record.

1954: The Cubs continue to wallow in the 2nd division as they finish in 7th place with a record of 64-90.1955: On May 12th Sam Jones closes out a no hitter in dramatic fashion by walking the first 3 batters of the 9th inning to load the bases before striking out the side. However, success does not come often for the Cubs who finish in 6th place with a 63-81 record.1956: The Cubs end up back in the basement as they post a terrible record of 60-94. 1957: Rookie Dick Drott strikes out 15 Braves-including famed slugger Hank Aaron three times-in a 7-5 win. However the Cubs would go on to finish with an awful 62-92 record that would have them tied for the NL's worst record.1958: SS Ernie Banks wins the NL MVP hitting 47 homers, while driving in 129 RBI. However, the Cubs still struggle and finish in 5th place tie with a 72-82 record.1959: Ernie Banks becomes the first National Leaguer to win the MVP trophy in back-to-back seasons as he hits 45 home runs and a major-league leading 143 RBI. However, once again the Cubs finish in a 5th place tie with a 74-80 record.1960: The Cubs struggles continue into a new decade as they finish in 7th place with a miserable record of 60-94.

1961: Owner P.K. Wrigley experimented with manager position, implementing a "College of Coaches." The system was meant to be a blending of ideas from several individuals instead of the traditional one skipper ended without success after just two seasons. The Cubs would finish in 7th place with a record of 64-90. 1962: The "College of Coaches" experiment is abandoned after 2 failed seasons as the Cubs end up with a horrific 9th Place 59-103 season, finishing worse then the expansion Houston Colt .45s. However, not all news is grim for the Cubs as 2B Ken Hubbs takes home Rookie of the Year honors.1963: With Bob Kennedy hired as the sole manager of the Cubs the team shows marked improvement finishing with an 82-80 record, a mere 23-game improvement over the previous season.

1964: Tragedy strikes the Cubs when promising young 2B Ken Hubbs is killed when the plane is piloting crashes into a mountain in Utah before the start of the season in which the Cubs took a step backward finish with a 76-86 record.1965: The Cubs slide into 8th place with a record of 72-90 record. 1966: Following an 8th place Leo Drrocher is hired as manager, and states, "The Cubs are not an 8th place team." Durocher is right as the Cubs fall into the NL Cellar with an awful 59-103 record. 1967: After an awful first season Leo Durocher final gets the Cubs to play his type of baseball, as the Cubs experience an impressive 28-game improvement on the way to a 3rd Place 87-74 season.1968: The Cubs continue to show some promise as they finish in 3rd place with a respectable record of 84-78.1969: Weather or not you are suppositious and believe in curses like a black cat you must admit what happened to the Cubs is an awful strange coincidence. After leading the NL East all summer the Cubs entered a key a 2-game series at Shea leading the Mets by two and half on September 9th. During that first game a black cat came out of nowhere and circled the Cub in the on deck circle before pacing back and forth on the top step of the Cubs dugout. The Cat would eventually take off down the tunnel leading to Cubs clubhouse. The Cubs would not recover eventually finishing 8 games out with a 92-70 record.

1970: Mr. Cub Ernie Banks belts his 500th career HR, as the Cubs fall 5 games short of 1st place with an 84-78 record.1971: Ernie Banks retires following his 19th season in a Cubs uniform, through his career Mr. Cub blasted 512 career HR, but never was fortunate to play in the postseason. In his final season the Cubs finish in a 3rd place tie with an 83-79 record.1972: Two No Hitters (Burt Hooton April 16th and Milt Pappas September 2nd) highlight a 2nd place 85-77 season, that season Leo Durocher fired after trouble with players and management boiled over, and began affecting the team's play.1973: In wacky season in which the entire NL East struggles to play .500 baseball the Cubs finish just 5 games out despite a record of 77-84.1974: After the departure of Ferguson Jenkins the Cubs sink back into the cellar finish with a terrible 66-96 record.

1975: The sole highlight of an otherwise forgettable 75-87 season comes on August 21st when Rick and Paul Reuschel become first brothers to combine on shutout in Cubs' 7-0 win vs. Dodgers.1976: OF Rick Monday rescues an American flag from two protesters attempting to burn nation's symbol in centerfield at Dodger Stadium. The Cubs would go on to repeat their 75-87 finish of the previous year, despite the efforts of Bill Madlock who wins the batting title by going 4 for 4 on the final day of the season.1977: After a fast start the Cubs fade to finish in 4th place with an 81-81 record.1978: The Cubs would again hover on the fringe of the pennant race as they finish just 11 games out of first place despite only posting a record of 79-83.1979: Bruce Sutter establishes himself as baseball's most dominant closer by taking home the NL Cy Young award. However, Sutter does not take the Cubs far as they finish in 5th place with an 80-82 record.1980: Following a miserable last place 64-98 season ace close Bruce Sutter is traded to the Cardinals for 1B Leon Durham.

1981: In the midst of a terrible season interrupted by a strike, in which the Cubs finish with an NL worst 38-65 combined record, the Cubs are sold by William Wrigley to the Tribune Company for $20.5 million.1982: Ferguson Jenkins returns to the Cubs and becomes the 7th pitcher to eclipses the 3,000 strikeout. However, the Cubs only manage to finish in 5th place with a 73-89 record. 1983: During an awful 5th place 71-91 season, manager Lee Ellia is fired after criticizing Cubs fans that sit in the OF seats known as the "Bleacher Bums".1984: On June 23rd Ryne Sandberg goes 5-for-6 and hits two late-inning game-tying home runs off St. Louis Cardinals reliever Bruce Sutter in a Cubs 11-inning 12-11 win. Sandberg would go on to win the NL MVP. Meanwhile Rick Suttcliffe who was acquired in a mid-June deal with the Cleveland Indians posts a 16-1 record on the way to claiming the NL Cy Young. Together Suttcliffe, ad Sandberg lead the Cubs to their first NL Eastern Division championship with a 96-65 record. In the Cubs first postseason appearance since 1945 the Cubs face the San Diego Padres in the NLCS. The Cubs get off to a fast start demolishing the Padres in Game 1 at Wrigley Field 13-0. The Cubs would follow it up with 4-2 win in Game 2, which would send the Cubs to San Diego only needing to win 1 game to advance to the World Series. The Cubs would hold leads in all 3 games, but the bullpen could not hold it as the Padres on 3 straight to advance to the World Series.

1985: The Cubs are not able to repeat their magic as the Cubs fall to 4th place with a 77-84 record.1986: The Cubs continue to slide in the standings as they fall to 5th place with a record of 70-90, as Gene Michael replace Jim Frey as Manager in the middle of the season.1987: The Cubs make a big splash by signing free agent OF Andre Dawson away from the Montreal Expos. Dawson would go on to lead the NL in HR with 49, taking home the MVP despite the Cubs finishing in last place with a 76-85 record.1988: On August 8th, in a contest against the Philadelphia Phillies, the Cubs play their first night game in Wrigley Field history, as number 1 Cubs fan; President Ronald Regan throws the switch from the White House. The night's debut was eventually rained out after 3 1/2 innings, and the first official night game occurred the next night, when the Cubs defeated the New York Mets, 6-4. The Cubs would go on to finish the season in 4th place with a record of 77-85.1989: Led by manager Don Zimmer, the Cubs enjoyed All-Star seasons from Ryne Sandberg, Andre Dawson, and Rick Sutcliffe. In addition the Cubs enjoyed strong relief from closer Mitch Williams, who earned the name "Wild Thing" for his some time walk filled relief appearances. With these key contributions the Cubs win the NL East with a 93-69 record. However the Cubs would go on to lose in the NLCS again falling victim to the hitting of Will Clark as the San Francisco Giants defeated the Cubs s 4 games to 1.

1990: The Cubs come back to earth finishing in a 4th place tie with a disappointing 77-85 record, in a year in which Wrigley Field hosts the All-Star Game.1991: Manager Don Zimmer is replaced by Jim Essian as the Cubs struggle again to finish in 4th place with a 77-83 record.1992: Near the end of spring training the Cubs make a deal with White Sox swapping OF George Bell, for Sammy Sosa. In Sosa's first season with Cubs the team finishes in 4th place with a 78-84 record.1993: Despite ending a string of 4 straight losing season manger Jim Lefbevre is fired after a 4th place season in which the Cubs finish 84-78.1994: Karl "Tuffy" Rhodes hits 3 Homer Runs during an opening day loss to the Mets. The Cubs would be stunned a few weeks later when star 2B Ryne Sandberg suddenly retires in an attempt to save a failing marriage. Without Sandberg the Cubs would be in last place in the newly formed NL Central with a 49-64 record when the season ended on August 12th because of a player's strike.1995: The Cubs emerge form the strike under new Management as 3rd generation GM Andy MacPhail takes over as president of the Cubs. In the first year of the MacPhail era the Cubs finish in 3rd place with a record of 73-71.

1996: Ryne Sandberg returns after a nearly 2 year hiatus in an attempt to set the career record for Homers among 2B as the Cubs finish in 4th place with a 76-86 record.1997: The Cubs stumble out of the gate losing their first 16 games as closer Mel Rojas, the Cubs big off-season Free Agent signing becomes on of the biggest free agent busts of all-time. Rojas would end up being dealt to the New York Mets in August, as the Cubs went on to finish in last place with a 68-94 record. Following the season Ryne Sandberg would retire for good holding the record for HR among 2B.1998: On May 6th Rookie Kerry Wood ties major-league record by fanning 20 batters in Cubs' 2-0 win over the Houston Astros. Wood would go on to take the Rookie of the Year, but it was overshadowed by the story of the yea. The story of the year would involve Cubs OF Sammy Sosa, and St. Louis Cardinals 1B Mark McGwire battle all season for the single season HR record held by Roger Maris. On September 13th in a 10-inning 11-10 win against the Milwaukee Brewers, Sosa hits home runs Nos. 61 and 62 to tie and then surpass Roger Maris on single-season home run list. Sosa would eventually end up with 66 HR leaving him just 4 behind McGwire for the record. Thanks to Sosa who claims the NL MVP the Cubs end the season tied with San Francisco Giants for the NL Wild Card with a record of 89-73. The Cubs would capture NL wild card with 5-3 win over the Giants in one-game playoff at Wrigley Field. However, the Cubs would go on to be swept in 3 straight games by the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS.

1999: On his way to winning the first Hank Aaron award for slugging Sammy Sosa becomes the first player to hit 60 HR in two consecutive seasons. However as in 1998 he would finish second to Mark McGwire for the NL lead. The Cubs would go on to fall back into last place with a 67-95 record, as the Cubs sorely missed Kerry Wood who missed the entire season with an arm injury.2000: The Cubs face the Mets at the start of the season with a 2 game series in Tokyo, Japan. The Cubs would win the first game of the series, which the two teams split. Sammy Sosa would go on to lead the NL in HRs with 50, as the Cubs finished in last place again with a 65-97 record.2001: Sammy Sosa tags 425 total bases for his second 400-plus campaign, setting club marks for extra-base hits (103) and slugging percentage (737), topping the records set by Hack Wilson. In addition, Sosa recorded just the seventh 50-homer/150 RBI season in Major League history. Sosa is the only player since World War II to accomplish this feat twice, having previously reached it in 1998 as well. The Cubs also get strong pitching in the early part of the season highlighted by back-to-back 1-hitters from John Lieber who goes on to win 20 games, and Kerry Wood on May 24th and 25th. Thanks to the pitching staff and Sosa the Cubs are in 1st Place until late August. However the Cubs would end up fading in September finishing in 3rd place behind the playoff bound Houston Astros and St. Louis Cardinals with a solid 88-74 record.

2002: After contending for the NL Central in 2001, hopes were high for the Cubs entering the season. However, early on it was clear the Cubs were going to be a disappointment as they found themselves well below .500 all season, while struggling to score runs. Making matters worse the Cubs started to take controversial measures, including putting up dark netting over the fence in back of the bleachers, to prevent fans from watching the game at the apartment buildings surrounding Wrigley Field. As midseason approached Manager Don Baylor was singled out as the scapegoat. However, under his replacement Bruce Kimm the Cubs would not do any better finishing in 5th place with an awful 67-95 record. The only thing Cubs had to look forward to was the debut of rookie pitcher Mark Prior, who goes 6-6 in 19 starts. Following the season the Cubs would change managers again, hiring Dusty Baker who had just led the San Francisco Giants to the World Series.2003: The Cubs began the season on a milestone watch, as Sammy Sosa needed just 1 long ball to achieve his 500th career Homer. Sosa would achieve the feat on the 4th day of the season going deep on the road in the Cincinnati Reds new ballpark. However Sosa struggled early and in May was placed on the disabled list. Despite the loss of Sosa the Cubs played solid baseball behind the terrific 1-2 punch of Kerry Wood and Mark Prior who were quickly establishing themselves as the best pitching combo in the NL. When Sosa returned from the DL he was still struggling so he tried to use a corked bat to get himself out of his slump. Instead in brought embarrassment as his bat broke in a June 3rd interlegaue game against the Tamp Bay Devil Rays spreading cork all over the field, and earning the star an 8-game suspension. After the suspension Sosa caught fire and overcame his early power struggles to end the season with 40 homers, and 103 RBI. The Cubs however would spend much of the next 2 months hovering around .500. Hoping to get back in the race the Cubs made several deals with the Pittsburgh Pirates acquiring Armais Ramirez, Kenny Lofton, and Randall Simon, which helped kick start the Cubs offense. Despite a mediocre 69-66 record entering September the Cubs were in thick of a 3-team race for the NL Central Division title. The Cubs would establish themselves as a serious contender by taking 4 out of 5 from the St. Louis Cardinals to begin the season's last month. It would kick start a 19-8 month as the Cubs pitching and improved offense were just enough to catapult them into first place where they won the first division title in 14 years with an 88-74 record. Facing the Atlanta Braves in the NLDS the Cubs got off to a good start as Kerry Wood stared on the mound and at the plate pitching a solid 7 plus while delivering a 2-run double as the Cubs won Game 1 in Atlanta 4-2. After the Braves took Game 2 the series shifted to Wrigley Field where Mark Prior out dueled Greg Maddux to give the Cubs a 3-1 win. However with a chance to close the series out in Game 4 Matt Clement struggled as the Braves evened the series with a 6-4 win setting up a decisive 5th game in Atlanta. Game 5 in Atlanta would see the return of Kerry Wood who dominated the Braves again as the Cubs won their first postseason series in 95 years with a 5-1 win. Facing the Florida Marlins in the NLCS the Cubs experienced a roller coaster of emotions in Game 1, as they jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead. However the Marlins rallied and took a lead into the 9th where Sammy Sosa delivered a 2-out 2-run homer to even the game at 8-8. However the Marlins would recover and win in the 11th inning. The loss would not deter the Cubs who came back the next night and won going away 12-3, as they took the next 3 games for a 3-1 series lead. After losing Game 5 in Florida the Cubs returned to Wrigley Field needing just 1 win to reach their first World Series since 1945. A party atmosphere was hovering over Wrigleyville as the Cubs had Mark Prior on the mound and a 3-0 lead going into the 8th Inning. The cheers got louder as Mike Mordecai flied out to start the inning. After a Juan Pierre double the Cubs appeared to have the innings 2nd out as Moises Alou drifted to the stands, but a fan named Steve Bartman knocked the ball away, opening the flood gates. The batter Luis Castillo would walk, which was followed by an Ivan Rodriguez single that put the Marlins on the board. Things would only get worse as SS Alex Gonzalez booted a double play ball as the Marlins went on to score 8 runs to force a 7th game with an 8-3 win. Not even Kerry Wood could save the Cubs in Game 7 as the Cubs ace was shaky as the Marlins took the game by a score of 9-6 to go on to the World Series leaving Cubs fans with heartbreak like they had never suffered before.

2004: Coming off their heartbreaking loss in the NLCS the Cubs were the popular pick to win the NL at the start of the season as their dynamic young pitching duo of Kerry Wood and Mark Prior was joined by future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux who was returning to the Cubs after 11 years with Atlanta Braves. The Cubs would get off to a solid start winning 12 of their first 18 games. However, as the season wore on the Cubs had issues with injuries as both Wood and Prior missed significant time due to injury making only a total of 43 starts, with neither winning 10 games. Picking up the slack for Wood and Prior was Maddux and Carlos Zambrano who each won a team high 16 games, included was Maddux's 300th career win against the San Francisco Giants on August 7th. While the Cubs were well out of the picture for the Division Title they remained in the Wild Card race until the end of the season. However with a week left in the season the Cubs bullpen failed them as protecting a 3-0 lead against the New York Mets with 2 outs in the 9th Inning Closer LaTroy Hawkins allowed a 3-run homer to September call up Victor Diaz. The Mets would go on to win in 11 innings as another minor league call up Craig Brazell won the game with a homer. The Cubs would not recover as they lost 7 of their final 9 games missing the Wild Card spot by just 3 games as they finished in 3rd place with an 89-73 record. On the final game of the season a simmering feud between Sammy Sosa and Manager Dusty Baker exploded as Sosa left early and was criticized heavily by Baker. Immediately trade rumors began to emerge as Sosa who despite hitting 35 Home Runs only managed 80 RBI while hitting .253, with a poor average in clutch situations. Eventually Sosa would be dealt to the Baltimore Orioles for Jerry Hairston Jr. and at least 2 minor-leaguers.

2005: From the start of the season Mark Prior and Kerry Wood dealt with nagging arm injuries that would limit them to just 37 total starts, as the Cubs play mediocre baseball all year, on the way to a disappointing 79-83 record that saw them land in 4th place. Despite not being in the playoff picture all year there still were several bright spots as 1B Derek Lee had a breakout year leading all 3 triple crown categories for much of the first half. Lee would manage to win the batting crown with a .335 average while his 46 homers ranked second in NL. However with few people on base in the second half he fell out of the top 10 and ended with 107 RBI. Also having a solid offensive season was 3B Aramis Ramirez who hit .302 with 31 homers and 93 RBI. However, Nomar Garicaparra continued to struggle with injuries as a torn groan limited him to just 62 games, as the Cubs decided to let him walk away as a Free Agent at the end of the season.

2006: The Cubs started the season as injuries continued and Mark Prior, as the two one time aces would hardly pitch making just 13 appearances combines, with Prior posting a 1-6 record with a robust 7.21 ERA. Despite the problems of Wood and Prior the Cubs got often to a decent start, winning 12 of their first 19 games. However, when Derek Lee suffered a fractured wrist in a collision with Rafael Furcal of the Los Angeles Dodgers on April 20th the Cubs offense suddenly lost its punch. While Lee would be limited to just 50 games the Cubs plunged quickly winning just 5 of 28 games leading into Memorial Day, as the Cubs embarked on another season to forget. As the season wore on frustrations in Chicago mounted as the Cubs set records for no shows at Wrigley Field. One night Cubs fans rather forget is a Sunday Night National TV game against the New York Mets in July, in which the Cubs allowed two Grand Slams in an 11-run 6th leading to fans showering the field with debris. It was one of several incidents of fans throwing garbage during the season. By the time the season was over Manager Dusty Baker who entered 2003 as a hero, had become public enemy number one as fans booed him every time he changed pitchers. The Cubs would end the season in last place with a terrible record of 66-96, as Baker was fired and replaced by Lou Piniella, who immediately became the source of the new hope for Cubs fans. With the hiring of Piniella the Cubs would also go on a wild off-season spending spree signing Alfonso Soriano seen by many as the top Free Agent following a 40-40 season with the Washington Nationals. In addition the Cubs signed Free Agent Pitchers Ted Lilly and Jason Marquis with the hopes of building a rotation they could count on beyond Carlos Zambrano.

2007: No matter how bleak the situation has been in the past the Cubs always begin the season full of optimism. A good reason for that optimism despite coming off a last place season was new Manager Lou Piniella and their big free agent signings. However, early on it was more of the same as the Cubs got off to a slow start losing six of their first nine games, as they posted a 10-14 record in April. In May the Cubs played a light better as they climbed above .500 on May 9th. However a week later the Cubs showed they still had a way to go as they blew a 5-1 lead in the 9th Inning against the New York Mets who were playing several reserves. The Cubs would rebound quickly as they took two of three against the cross-town White Sox. However, the Cubs still struggled the rest of the month and started June with a record of 22-30. As June began the Cubs looked like they were about to come apart at the seems as ace pitcher Carlos Zambrano and Catcher Michael Barrett got in a dugout shoving match as the Cubs were beaten by the Atlanta Braves 8-5. A day later it was Piniella blowing his top as he began kicking dirt and threw his cap after a close play at third base sent him out to argue with Umpire Mark Wegner. Piniella was suspended four games for the incident, but it seemed to light a fire under his team as the Cubs won 8 of their next 12 games. While problems still existed as Michael Barrett, who would end up being dealt to the San Diego Padres, was involved in another altercation this time with pitcher Rich Hill, the Cubs seemed to be turning the corner. As June was coming to a close the Cubs were playing solid baseball winning seven straight to approach .500 again as they swept a three game series with the White Sox on the South Side. After ending the first half with a record of 44-43, the Cubs began to make their move in the Central Division as they ended the month of July just a half game behind the first place Milwaukee Brewers as they posted a 17-9 record, including wins in 9 of their first 12 games after the All-Star Game. Despite a rough stretch in August, after losing Alfonso Soriano for a few weeks to an injury the Cubs entered September in the thick of the pennant race. Down the stretch it would be the Cubs led by their pitching staff that would end up getting the edge as they won 10 of 12 games during a key stretch in mid-September to take over first place. The Cubs would end up completing a worst-to0first turnaround as they won the NL Central with a record of 85-77, as they set a new attendance record of 3,252,462. In the NLDS the Cubs were matched up against the Arizona Diamondbacks. In Game 1 pitching was the story as Brandon Webb and Carlos Zambrano both had solid starts as the game was tied 1-1 after six innings. However, the Cubs bullpen would falter as the D-Backs won 3-1. After losing 8-4 in Game 2 the series shifted to Wrigley Field with the Cubs needing a win to avoid a sweep. Things did not start well as Chris Young homered on Rich Hill's first pitch. The Cubs would not be able to fight back as the Diamondbacks completed the three game sweep with a 5-1 win.