Well, let me tell you about them Cubs, the baseball team, you know. They got some fellas who done real good, won them MVP awards. MVP, that’s like the best player, the top dog. My grandson, he’s all into baseball, he told me all about it.
This whole MVP thing, it’s a big deal, you see. They been givin’ it out for a long, long time. Like, even before I was a little girl runnin’ around barefoot.
So, these Cubs MVP winners, they’re somethin’ special. Like that fella, Ernie Banks. Now there was a ball player. He won it twice. Can you believe it? Twice! Back in ’58 and then again in ’59. He musta been swingin’ that bat like a man possessed. My grandson, he says that Ernie, he’s a legend.
- Ernie Banks, he won in 1958
- Ernie Banks again in 1959, that fella was on fire!
Then there’s others too. This one fella, 1935, Gabby Hartnett, he got one. A long time ago. Then there’s a whole bunch more. Like this Ryne Sandberg, Sammy Sosa, they all got one of them MVP things. It’s like a golden ticket, I reckon. Shows you’re the best of the best.
They got these awards, and they got them league leaders. They’re like the top of the heap in different things. Batting, and running and all that. Ross Barnes, George Gore, Cap Anson, King Kelly. Those are some old-timey names, ain’t they? My grandson, he showed me all these names on his fancy computer.
- 1911, some fella named Frank Schulte, he got one.
- 1929, it was Rogers Hornsby’s turn.
- 1930, Hack Wilson, that’s a funny name, ain’t it?
- 1935, there’s Gabby Hartnett again!
- 1945, some fella named Phil Cavarretta got it.
- 1952, Hank Sauer, he won.
They keep track of all this, you know. Every year, who’s the best, who’s the fastest, who hit the most balls over the fence. It’s a whole thing.
The Cubs, they been around a long time. Longer than me, even! They started way back in the 1800s. That’s before they even had them fancy cars, I reckon. They won a bunch of stuff back then too. Pennants, they call ’em. Like winning the whole shebang. They got some in 1876, 1880, 1881, 1882. They were really somethin’ back then.
Nowadays, they still playin’. They got new fellas now. Kris Bryant, he won one in 2016. And they got this other fella, Ben Zobrist, he won somethin’ too. They got all kinds of awards. It’s hard to keep track of ’em all.
This baseball, it’s a big deal. People get all excited about it. They holler and cheer, and they wear them Cubs hats. My grandson, he’s got a whole closet full of Cubs stuff. He says it’s important to support your team.
Winning that MVP, it ain’t easy. You gotta be real good. You gotta hit that ball farther than anyone else, run faster, catch better. It takes a lot of work, I reckon. Like tending to a garden, you gotta put in the time if you want somethin’ good to come out of it. These Cubs MVP winners, they put in the time, that’s for sure.
These days they got all these fancy stats and numbers. They measure everything. How fast you throw, how far you hit, how many times you strike out. It’s all on that computer. My grandson, he understands it all. Me, I just like watchin’ the game.
- Ryne Sandberg, 1984.
- Andre Dawson, 1987.
- Sammy Sosa, 1998.
- Kris Bryant, 2016.
Those Cubs MVP winners, they’re like heroes to some folks. They get their pictures in the paper, they get interviewed on the TV. It’s a big deal, like I said. But at the end of the day, they’re just regular fellas, playin’ a game. A game that a lot of folks love, that’s all.
So, there you have it. That’s what I know about the Cubs MVP winners. They’re good ballplayers, that’s for sure. And they make the folks who love the Cubs mighty proud. It’s all part of the game, I reckon. A game that’s been around for a long, long time. And probably will be for a long time to come.
