In 1929, uniform numbers appeared on the back of baseball jerseys for the first time, thanks to the Indians and the Yankees. By 1937, numbers finally appeared across all uniforms, both home and away, across both major leagues. Since that time, 81 distinct numbers have been worn by members of the White Sox, while the Cubs boast 76.
Today, we continue our look at those players, picking our favorite, if not the best, player to wear each uniform number for both Chicago teams with #22. 76 different players have donned #22 while playing in Chicago, 26 for the White Sox and 50 for the Cubs.
Acquired from the Dodgers, along with Ivan DeJesus, in exchange for Rick Monday and Mike Garman, Bill Buckner joined the Cubs, wearing #22, in 1977. A staph infection in his ankle the previous year caused the Cubs to move the former outfielder to first base, a position he would man for the rest of his career. Appearing in 122 games, he hit .284 with 11 home runs and 27 doubles. He improved in 1978, raising his average to .323 and placed 17th in MVP voting. 1979 was another steady year for Buckner. On May 17th, in the infamous slugfest where the Cubs lost 23-22 to the Phillies, he went 4–for–7 with a grand slam and a career-high seven RBIs. He finished the year hitting .284 with 14 home runs and 34 doubles, but was also described as “nuts” when manager Herman Franks resigned late in the season.
In 1980, Buckner won a batting title, hitting .324 while striking out only 18 times, earning him a 14th place finish in MVP voting. In the strike-shortened 1981 season, he was the lone Cub representative for the All Star game and batted .311 while tying Cecil Cooper for the major league lead with 35 doubles. 1982 saw Buckner hit over .300 for the fourth time as a Cub while racking up career highs in hits, with 201, RBIs, with 105, and assists at first base, setting a major league record with 159.
In 1983, Buckner again led the NL with 38 doubles, but saw his batting average drop to .280, his lowest finish as a Cub. With the acquisition of Gary Matthews in 1984 pushing Leon Durham to first base, Buckner found himself the odd man out. Appearing mostly as a pinch hitter, Buckner hit a paltry .209 through the end of May, when he was traded to the Red Sox, ending his Cub tenure.
Scott Podsednik was acquired by the White Sox from the Brewers for Carlos Lee on December 13, 2004. Wearing #22, he moved in to the leadoff spot and, after putting up a .294 average with 44 steals in the first half, he earned his first All Star game nod. While injuries slowed him in the second half, he was back to full strength when the regular season came to an end and the White Sox embarked on their first post-season appearance in 5 years. After going the entire regular season without a home run, Podsednik went deep against the Red Sox in Game 1 of the ALDS, helping the White Sox to a 14-2 victory on their way to a 3 game sweep of the defending champions. Podsednik continued his steady play during the ALCS, hitting .294 with a triple and 3 stolen bases in the 5 game series. The shining moment of his career came in Game 2 of the World Series, thanks to a walkoff home run against Brad Lidge in the 9th inning, giving the White Sox a 2-0 lead on their way to a sweep and their first world championship in 88 years. For his efforts, Podsednik finished in 12th place for MVP voting.
As the White Sox looked to repeat in 2006, Podsednik found it difficult to duplicate his efforts from the year before. His average was down 29 points, to .261, and his stolen base total was off by 19. Injuries limited Podsednik to 62 games in 2007. His offensive production continued to be lacking and, after the White Sox fell completely out of contention for the first time in years, the team decided to change their approach and gave Podsednik his release. He returned to the White Sox organization in 2009, signing a minor league deal. Injuries to Brian Anderson, Dewayne Wise, and Carlos Quentin gave him plenty of opportunity with the big league club, and he responded by hitting .304, his highest total since 2003. Following the season, he became a free agent.
In the past, we’ve looked at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. This offseason, we will take our first ever look at those leaders against all 30 clubs. We continue today with the Chicago Cubs.
