February 28, 2021January 30, 2021 by admin

By The Numbers – 65

Baseball
ALDS, Casey Sadler, Cubs, Indians, Kelly Wunsch, Mariners, Rangers, Rookie Of The Year Award, White Sox, Yankees
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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 #65. 8 players have donned #65 while playing in Chicago, 7 for the White Sox and 1 for the Cubs.

Kelly Wunsch donned #65 for his entire White Sox career, starting on Opening Day against the Rangers for the eventual 2000 AL Central champions. Finishing 5th in AL Rookie of the Year voting, Wunsch appeared in all 3 games of the ALDS against the Mariners, giving up 2 hits and 1 unearned run in one inning pitched. Injuries marred the rest of his White Sox tenure, with rotator cuff surgery in 2001, continued shoulder soreness in 2002, and a back injury in 2003. After starting the 2004 season on the disabled list, he ended up spending most of the season in Triple A, appearing in only 3 games for the White Sox, and he became a free agent at year’s end.

Casey Sadler is the only #65 in Cubs history, appearing in 10 games early in the 2020 season with a 5.79 before being claimed by the Mariners off of waivers.

July 6, 2019June 23, 2019 by admin

Crosstown Pitching Leaders Revisited

Last month, the 2019 Crosstown Cup series kicked off at Wrigley Field with the teams splitting the two games. With round two scheduled to get under way tonight at across town at Guaranteed Rate Field, we look at the pitching leaders from the 71 contests I’ve attended in the annual match-up between the White Sox and the Cubs, starting with:

Wins

Name	Total
Carlos Zambrano	4
Mark Buehrle	3
Jon Lieber	3
13 tied with	2

Losses

Name	Total
Carlos Zambrano	3
Mark Buehrle	3
Jon Garland	3
Jose Contreras	3
10 tied with	2

ERA (> 9 IP)

Name	Total
Matt Thornton	0.00
Glendon Rusch	0.00
Chris Sale	0.56
Kip Wells	1.13
Freddy Garcia	1.20

Strikeouts

Name	Total
Carlos Zambrano	46
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November 26, 2016November 26, 2016 by admin

#55 – Kelly Wunsch

Name: Kelly Wunsch

Rank: 55

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2000-2004

Kelly Wunsch signed with the White Sox as a free agent in November of 1999. He made his major league debut on April 3, 2000, pitching a scoreless inning of relief in the White Sox opening day loss to the Rangers in Arlington. Wunsch ended up putting together the best season of his career, with a league high 83 appearances, a 6-3 record, and a 2.93 ERA. He finished 5th in AL Rookie of the Year voting. Wunsch appeared in all 3 games of the ALDS against the Mariners, giving up 2 hits and 1 unearned run in one inning pitched.

2001 was easily the worst season of Wunsch’s career, thanks in part to a June injury that led to rotator cuff surgery. Appearing in only 33 games, he saw his ERA balloon to 7.66.

Wunsch started the 2002 season on the disabled list with continued shoulder soreness. Once he returned to the big leagues, he showed some of the effectiveness he displayed in his rookie season, dropping his ERA to 3.41 in 50 appearances, covering just over 31 innings.

A back injury led to Wunsch missing time during the 2003 season. Despite that, he put up a career-low ERA of 2.75 in 36 innings over 43 games.

Wunsch was back on the disabled list to start the 2004 season. He ended up spending most of the season in Triple A, appearing in only 3 games for the White Sox. Following the season, he became a free agent, ending his White Sox career.

Wunsch’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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August 27, 2015August 23, 2015 by admin

Crosstown Pitching Leaders

Last week, with the 2015 Crosstown Cup series wrapped up, we looked at the leaders in the 63 crosstown games I’ve attended since interleague play began in 1997. Today, we look at the pitching leaders in the annual match-up between the White Sox and the Cubs, starting with: