THE CHICAGO CUBS - AUTOGRAPHED SIGNED PHOTOGRAPH CO-SIGNED BY: BOB ADDIS, FRANK "THE BEAU" BAUMANN, KEN JOHNSON, BOB TALBOT, FACUNDO BARRAGAN - HFSID 296828

CHICAGO CUBS: BOB ADDIS, FRANK BAUMANN, KEN JOHNSON, BOB TALBOT and CUNO BARRAGAN
Aerial view of Wrigley Field, Chicago, signed by five former Cubs
Photograph signed: "Bob Addis 1952-53", "Bob Talbot 53-54", "Frank Baumann/1960-1965", "Ken Johnson/1971", "Cuno Barrigan". B/w, 10x8. View of Wrigley Field and the Chicago skyline. Although they haven't appeared in a World Series since 1945 and haven't won one since 1908, the Chicago Cubs are one of baseball's most beloved teams, with a large national following. For most of the twentieth century, they shared that misery with the Chicago White Sox (1917) and Boston Red Sox (1918), but the Sox teams won back to back Series in 2004 (Bosox) and 2005 (Chisox), to leave the Cubs as the only remaining original franchise enduring such a long drought. Nevertheless, many great ballplayers have worn Cubs uniforms, and Wrigley Field, shown here, home of the Cubs since 1916, is one of baseball's enduring "green cathedrals." The players signing here were far from Hall of Famers, but that is ok with Cubs fans. Their Washington, D.C. fan club is the Emil Verban Society, named for an obscure Cubs infielder said to personify the team. (Members of the club have included Ronald Reagan (once a Cubs broadcaster), Dick Cheney, Hillary Clinton and Justice John Paul Stevens. (President Obama, a White Sox fan enlisted in the Society by other members, has been told that membership is permanent and irrevocable.) BOB TALBOT (1927-2017) worked his way up through the Cubs farm system, reaching the parent club in late 1953 and becoming the regular center fielder in 1954. Despite being a good fielder with a strong arm, Talbot didn't hit well enough to stick in the Majors, but played in the high minors through 1960. Outfielder and pinch hitter BOB ADDIS (1925-2016) played in 208 Major League games between 1950 and 1953. Traded to the Cubs from the Braves before the 1952 season, he was traded again to the Pittsburgh Pirates during 1953. Pitcher KEN JOHNSON (1933-2015) had a 13-year Major League career (1958-1970), but only one year was spent with the Cubs, as noted above. Playing mostly for sub-.500 teams, he compiled a career won-lost record of 91-106. Pitcher FRANK BAUMANN, a highly touted Red Sox rookie in 1955, never quite lived up to expectations but had a respectable 11 season record as a starter and reliever, going 45-38 lifetime. He spent his last six seasons in Chicago with the White Sox (1960-1964) and Cubs (1965). FACUNDO "CUNO" BARRAGAN (1932-2024) caught for the Cubs from 1961 to 1963. He hit is only Major League home run in his very first time at bat. Although Barragan's Major League career was brief, he is enshrined in the Mexican Baseball Hall of Fame. Fine condition.