Winning on the North Side: The 1929 Chicago Cubs (The SABR Digital Library)

“The best team I ever played on was McCarthy’s twenty-niners. It was strictly power all the way. No tricky baseball.” —Cubs first baseman Charlie Grimm

This book celebrates the 1929 Chicago Cubs, one of the most exciting teams in baseball history. Bashing their way to the pennant by crushing their opponents in a high-scoring era, skipper Joe McCarthy’s North Siders were an offensive juggernaut, leading the majors with 982 runs scored. Future Hall of Famers Hack Wilson, ’29 NL MVP Rogers Hornsby, and Kiki Cuyler, along with Riggs Stephenson formed one of the most potent quartets in baseball history, collectively scoring 493 runs and knocking in 520. As awe-inspiring as the Cubs offense was, their pitching was almost as good. Charlie Root, Guy Bush, and Pat Malone anchored a staff that finished second in team ERA and led the league in shutouts.

The Cubs’ magical season came to an ignominious conclusion when they faced Connie Mack’s Philadelphia Athletics in the World Series. Long before the “lovable loser” moniker was attached to the Cubs, Chicago’s crushing defeat in five games helped craft the narrative of fateful losses.

The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) invites you to read the life and baseball stories of all the roster players and the coaching staff and relive an important part of baseball history. Also included are biographies of club owner William Wrigley, visionary executive Bill Veeck, Sr., and Margaret Donahue, the first female executive in baseball history. A summary of the regular season and World Series, as well as essays on the 1929 Athletics, Wrigley Field, Catalina Island, and fate of the Cubs after 1929 round out this volume. With contributions from 26 members of the SABR BioProject, this book is a riveting account of one of the most memorable teams in Chicago sports history.

Introduction by Gregory H. Wolf
THE OWNER
William Wrigley, Jr. by David Fletcher and George Castle
THE CUBS
Tom Angley by Jack Morris
Clyde Beck by Norm King
Footsie Blair by Norm King
Sheriff Blake by Gregory H. Wolf
Guy Bush by Gregory H. Wolf
Hal Carlson by Ernie Fuhr
Kiki Cuyler by Gregory H. Wolf
Mike Cvengros by Chip Greene
Woody English by Dan Fields
Mike González by Joseph Gerard
Earl Grace by Greg Erion
Hank Grampp by Peter Morris
Charlie Grimm by Dan Fields
Gabby Hartnett by William H. Johnson
Cliff Heathcote by William H. Johnson
Trader Horne by Dan Fields
Rogers Hornsby by C. Paul Rogers
Claude Jonnard by William H. Johnson
Pat Malone by Gregory H. Wolf
Norm McMillan by Bill Nowlin
Johnny Moore by C. Paul Rogers
Art Nehf by Gregory H. Wolf
Bob Osborn by Nancy Snell Griffith
Ken Penner by Chip Greene
Charlie Root by Gregory H. Wolf
Johnny Schulte by James Lincoln Ray
Riggs Stephenson by Gregory H. Wolf
Danny Taylor by Nancy Snell Griffith
Zack Taylor by Norm King
Chick Tolson by Chip Greene
Hack Wilson by Thomas E. Schott
THE MANAGER
Joe McCarthy by John McMurray
THE COACHES
Jimmy Burke by Gary Livacari
Mickey Doolan by Paul Mittermeyer
Grover Land by Gary Livacari
FRONT OFFICE
Bill Veeck, Sr. by David Fletcher and George Castle 200
Margaret Donahue by David Fletcher and George Castle
Wrigley Field by Scott Ferkovich
Catalina Island by Zachary Michael Jack
THE SPORTSWRITERS
Ed Burns by Chip Greene
Irving Vaughan by Chip Greene
RADIO ANNOUNCER
Bob Elson by Fred Taylor
SEASON SUMMARY
The 1929 Chicago Cubs Regular Season Summary by Gregory H. Wolf
HIGHLIGHTS AT WRIGLEY FIELD IN 1929
Full Game Summaries by Gregory H. Wolf
June 9: Art Nehf and Ben Cantwell hurl four-hitters