Here They
Are in All Their Glory!
The
Uniforms of the Chicago Cubs
Bask in the Tradition. Bask
in the Memories.
Titled “There Are No Other
Teams” and Licensed by Major League Baseball, the
Artwork is available in two framed presentations:
An eye-catching framed-and-matted print
measuring 12” x 21” that sells for only $52 each—which is an exceptional
value for a fully assembled Artpiece of this size. And a dramatic 19” x 39” triple-matted high-quality print (a
Letter of Authenticity is included) that is limited to an edition size of only
299 and sells for the discounted cost of $399.
Please note your Artwork will arrive at your
door in 7 to 10 days when you place your order. And needless to say, there is a 30-day full moneyback
guarantee. In addition, The
Greatest-Scapes pays all shipping costs and any required sales tax!
The Greatest-Scapes also offers the option of
an interest-free Extended Payment Plan for credit card orders. For the $52 framed print, you can pay $26.00
upfront and the balance of $26.00 thirty days later. While the $399 framed Limited Edition can be purchased with an
initial $133, and payments of $133 billed thirty and sixty days later.
To phone in your credit
card order, please call us at 1-800-786-3022 anytime between 10am and 6pm
(Eastern) Monday through Friday. You
can also mail in your order, payable to The Greatest-Scapes, to: The Greatest-Scapes/P.O. Box
5548/Pittsburgh, PA 15206. Please
include your shipping address and specify which Artwork(s) you’re ordering and
how many. And please don’t hesitate to
call us toll-free if you ever have any questions or would like any additional
information.
For your convenience, you can print out our
Order Form.
Click Here for
Order Form
And this Artwork evokes an unmistakably
Classic quality. Indeed, it will look
at home next to a diploma or a work of fine art. Whether you hang it on a wall or lean it on a shelf or mantle, the
Artwork will make a striking impression.
Please keep in mind, though, the visuals
depicted here on the website simply can not do justice to the detail and
quality of the actual Artwork.
Please note the uniform images shown are
produced from hand-painted watercolor paintings. The publisher chose this route, rather than photographs, because
in many cases original jerseys no longer exist, even at the various halls of
fame. In addition, a more consistent
look and feel for the uniforms is achieved by painting them, and allows for a
higher level of detail than a photograph in some cases.
Here, then, is a detailed description of the
12” x 21” Artpiece that sells for only $52 each. It consists of a 5” x 15” paper print that is housed in a black
frame with a textured black mat. The
black mat has a white groove cut into it, thus adding depth and beauty to the
piece. Weighing approximately five
pounds, the Artwork is covered by crystal-clear glass and includes a
“hanger” on the back to allow for easy hanging. The black frame—and especially the textured black mat with
white groove—makes this a truly stunning Artpiece.
The above is an example of
the 12” x 21” Artpiece, which depicts the Washington Redskins.
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As for the 19” x 39” Limited Edition Artwork,
please note each Artwork is printed on 115-lb Garda Gloss stock and then
mounted to avoid any rippling effects.
As for its matting and framing, the Limited Edition is triple-matted in
an acid-free framing style. The outer
mat is a rich, black textured mat with white core. The middle and inner mat colors have been selected to complement
the team’s colors and the overall framed piece. The matting is framed to create a shadow box effect, giving the
entire framed piece a unique three-dimensional look. The frame is an exquisite solid wood frame finished with a rich
black matte texture, chosen to complement all three mats and the print
itself. Finally, the Artpiece is
protected by high-quality framing glass; the total weight of the Artpiece being
approximately 10 pounds.
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The above is
an example of the 19” x 39” Limited Edition Artpiece,
which depicts
the New York Yankees.
Here then is the history of the Cubs’ Uniforms …
#1A.
1908
In 1876, the Chicago White Stockings (yes -
the Cubs used to be called the White Stockings!) become one of eight charter
members of the National League. On
April 25, 1876 the team plays the first game in the history of the Chicago National
League Ball Club. A.G. Spalding doubles as the manager and pitcher, and he
records the first NL shutout, a 4-0 win over Louisville. The White Stockings go
on to win the inaugural National League championship with a record of 52-14.
Using nicknames such as the "White
Stockings," "Colts," and Orphans," the team plays in five
different ball parks in the 1800s. The origin of the name Cubs isn’t precisely
known, but one story has it that in 1901 and 1902 the team was full of rookies
and on March 27, 1902 a reporter in the Chicago Daily News referred to the team
as the “Cubs”, a name that eventually stuck.
The jersey depicted here is a 1908 home
jersey with a full pull-down collar. The logo is a brown bear standing on its
hind legs holding a bat. Even though this jersey has several buttons down the
front, it still was a “pullover” style jersey that had to be pulled over top of
the head.
In 1908, for the third year in a row, the
Cubs headed to the World Series. In 1906 they fell to the cross-town rival White
Sox; while in 1907 they won four straight over the Tigers. In this season,
1908, the Cubs and Tigers met again, with the Cubs winning the World Series 4
games to 1. Even the presence of Detroit’s legendary Ty Cobb wasn’t enough to
overcome the Cubs of the early 1900’s. In the 1908 Series Cobb was held to just
4 hits and 2 stolen bases in the 5 games, as the Cubs went on to become the
first team to win back-to-back World Series Championships.
The Cubs have had a dry spell since 1908, but
despite this drought, Cubs’ fans are ever hopeful and remain among the most
loyal fans in all of baseball.
#1B.
1909 The
Cubs are one of the first major league teams, (along with the Boston Braves
& Brooklyn Dodgers) to implement pinstripes as a part of their uniforms, a
practice that actually began with their 1907 World Series uniform. The 1909
collar on this road uniform is cadet style. Note also the “CHICAGO” down the
front of the jersey - a wonderful touch we’d love to see repeated by a modern
team. Just like the 1908 jersey, there are buttons down the front of this
jersey, but it’s still a “pullover style” jersey.
1909 is the first year that the Cubs had a
large “C” with a smaller “ubs” inside of it. This jersey is from the Cubs’ most
successful era, when they made it to the World Series 4 times in 5 years,
(1906, 1907, 1908 & 1910) winning it all in 1907 and 1908.
#1C.
1911 The
collar on this dark blue road jersey is halfway between a cadet style and the
style of today. This is a pullover style jersey, even though it has some
buttons down the front, it still had to be pulled over the head. A white bear
inside a white “C” appears on this jersey, slightly different than previous
logos, but the theme remains the same, a bear and a bat.
Note also how there is a center belt loop and
how the belt buckle is worn to one side. Players of this era usually wore the
belt buckle to one side to prevent injury when sliding into a base.
#2.
1916 The
logo changes once again on this home uniform, now it’s a red “C” and a blue
bear on all fours. The 1916 season is of great interest to Cubs fans because it
was the first year the Cubs played in what we all know now as “Wrigley Field”.
Prior to 1916 the Cubs played their home
games at the West Side Grounds. In 1916 Charles Weeghman purchased the team
& moved them to “Weeghman Park” for the 1916 season. This ballpark had been
built two years earlier and was home to the Federal League’s Chicago Whales
until the League folded in 1915. The first National League game played at
Weeghman Park was on April 20th, 1916 when the Cubs beat the
Cincinnati Reds 7-6 in 11 innings.
The Cubs were sold to William Wrigley in
1920, & the park was renamed “Cubs Park”. Then in 1926 the name was changed
to Wrigley Field, the name we know and love today.
#3.
1925 This
home uniform is still a pullover style jersey with a cadet collar. They stuck
with the large red “C” and went with the “ubs” inside of it, similar to the
1909 logo. The patch on the left sleeve commemorates the 50th
anniversary of the National League. On April 14th, 1925 the 1st
regular season radio broadcast of a Cubs game hit the air on WGN Radio, with
Quin Ryan calling the play by play. Chicago beat Pittsburgh 8-2.
#4A.
1932 Most
baseball fans know that teams typically wear the name of their city on their
road uniforms and their nicknames for their home uniforms - this has been done
for over 100 years. What makes this jersey interesting is that only a handful
of Major League teams have ever worn a jersey with both the team’s city AND
nickname appearing on the same jersey, such as is the case here.
The Cubs wore this pullover style road
uniform for the 1932 and 1933 seasons. In 1932 the Cubs made it to the World
Series and thus faced Babe Ruth and the New York Yankees. In Game 3, October 1st,
the story is told that while The Babe was at bat in the 5th inning,
he paused, pointed to the right-centerfield bleachers, and “called his shot”.
The next pitch ended up in the seats where he had predicted. The Yankees swept
the Series in 4 games.
On a sad note, both former owner Charles
Weeghman & current owner William Wrigley passed away this year. Wrigley’s
son Philip Knight, “P.K.” took over for his father.
#4B.
1934 This
is a full button-down front home uniform (as opposed to the pullover style
jersey) with distinctive red and blue piping around the collar and cuffs. The
logo is a bear cubs winding up to pitch, but we have to admit it looks as much
like an ape as it does a bear.
The Cubs made it to the World Series 3 times
in the 30’s but were defeated by the Yankees in 1932, the Tigers in 1935 and
the Yankees again in 1938.
A1930’s point of interest:
In September 1937 Bill Veeck planted the ivy
that now covers the brick wall of Wrigley Fields’ outfield. The ivy has become
synonymous with Wrigley Field, & gives outfielders a second thought about
tracking a fly ball to the wall.
#5A.
1940 The
Cubs have abandoned the traditional jersey and have introduced a vest with
stylized undershirt complete with red striped cuffs. This is the first time a
vest was worn by a major league team, and the Cubs wore a vest for the
1940-1942 seasons. (The next team to wear a vest was the 1956 Cincinnati Reds.)
Notice also the zippered front on this road
uniform. The 1937 Cubs were the first team to wear a zippered jersey, with the
White Sox and Tigers joining in the following year. During the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s many
teams used zippered jerseys instead of the more traditional button front
jerseys, while a handful of teams wore them well into the 70’s and even the
80’s. The Reds, Yankees and A’s were the three pre-1977 major league teams that
never wore zippers. As mentioned above, the 1937 Cubs were the first team to
wear a zippered jersey, and as far we can tell the 1988 Phillies were the last
to wear one.
Perhaps the most unusual part of this jersey
is the uniformly thin underline under the “Chicago”. Usually baseball uniforms
feature more of a “swoosh” underline, like the 1932 jersey.
It’s interesting to note that in 1940 Wrigley
Field was about to become one of the first ballparks with lights, to allow
night games, but when World War II began, the team donated them to the war
effort. As it turns out, the Cubs ended up being the last team to get lights,
& played their first night game at Wrigley in 1988.
#5B.
1945 This
is a classic uniform, one of our favorites! Note that the red stripes on the
cuffs of the undershirt are still present (see the 1940 jersey).
During the Second World War, the question is
raised, should able-bodied athletes of baseball be fighting for their country
rather than playing baseball? Baseball Commissioner Landis asked President
Franklin D. Roosevelt what to do - here is part of Roosevelt’s reply:
“I honestly feel it would be best for the
country to keep baseball going. There will be fewer people unemployed and
everybody will work longer hours and harder than ever before… Here is another
way of looking at it - if 300 teams use 5,000 or 6,000 players, these players
are a definite recreational asset to at least 20,000,000 of their fellow
citizens - and that in my judgment is thoroughly worthwhile.”
Wartime sleeve patches were worn by all
levels of professional baseball teams between 1942 and 1945. A “Health” patch
was worn during the 1942 season, part of a war-time health and fitness
awareness campaign, and from 1943-1945 a “Stars and Stripes” was worn.
Now we have to fess up - some of our Cubs’
posters show the “Health” patch on the 1945 uniform - this wasn’t the case, we
should have shown the Stars & Stripes patch. As noted above, the health
patch was only worn in 1942. Sorry for the mix-up!
In 1945 the Cubs made it to the World Series,
but fell to the Tigers 4 games to 3, losing to the Tigers at Wrigley Field in
Game 7 by a 9-3 score. The Cubs have to wait until 1984 to make it back to post
season play.
#6.
1957 In
this home uniform we see the first appearance of pinstripes for the Cubs since
the early 1930’s. Notice the Cubs logo and how similar it is to that of today.
By 1957 the great Ernie Banks, Mr. Cub, was playing his 5th season,
batting .285 and knocking in 102 runs.
#7.
1969 Numbers
are added to the front of this road jersey for the first time. Uniform numbers
first made their appearance on the front of a uniform in 1952 - the Brooklyn
Dodgers were the first team to wear uniform numbers on the front of their jersey.
The Braves followed suit in 1953, and the Reds joined in beginning in 1956. The
1916 Cleveland Indians actually wore a uniform number on their sleeve, but it
wasn’t until the ’52 Dodgers that the number made it to the front. The Cub face
patch seen on the left shoulder made its first appearance in 1962. If we could
see the right sleeve of this jersey, we would see a patch worn by all MLB teams
that commemorated the 100th anniversary of professional baseball.
When I see this jersey, I can’t help but think of two great Cubs -
shortstop-turned first baseman Ernie Banks and the great Ferguson Jenkins, who
had six 20+ game winning seasons in a row with the Cubs from 1967-1972.
#8.
1972 This
home jersey is of a double-knit style that most major league teams succumbed to
during the 70’s and early 80’s. It was a pullover style, made of stretchy,
synthetic material. The pants were called “Sans-a-Belt”’s because the
elasticized waistline eliminated the need for a belt. This was a successful era
for the Cubs, who finished either 2nd or 3rd and above
.500 for 6 straight years (1967-1972), but could never quite make it to post
season play.
#9.
1984 This
road uniform is still the double knit pullover style, with the “Sans-a-Belt”
elastic waistline. Notice the new bear patch on the left sleeve.
The patch on the right sleeve celebrates the
fact that the Cubs were the National League Eastern Division Champs (they
finished with a 96-65 regular season record) and made it to the post season for
the first time since 1945! But in the National League Championship Series
against the Padres, the Cubs win the first two games to take a commanding 2-0
lead in the best-of-five series, then drop the next 3 games (all in San Diego)
and fail to make it to the World Series.
#10.
1990 Thank
goodness - by now the double knit, Sans-A-Belt era has finally come to an end!
Grown men shouldn’t have to play ball in polyester!
This 1990 road uniform has the uniform
numbers on the front once again. The familiar Cubs logo as we know it today is
on the left sleeve. The right sleeve has a patch that the Cubs wore all season
long. This patch commemorates the fact that the Cubs & Wrigley Field played
host to the 1990 All Star game. This practice, where the team which hosts the
all-star game wears a patch commemorating the game, began in the 1970’s and
continues today.
#11.
1998 This
home uniform shows a circle C and walking bear logo on the left sleeve, a logo
that is reminiscent of the 1916 jersey logo. Note also the fact that there is a
blue and white “Hey Hey” on the left sleeve just above the bear logo. This
expression is a tribute to longtime Cubs announcer Harry Caray, who passed away
prior to the ’98 season. On the right sleeve, which we cannot see, the Cubs
wore a simple but unmistakable black and white caricature of Harry Caray.
In this famous season, 1998, Sammy Sosa of
the Cubs and Mark McGwire of the Cardinals battled head to head in an awesome
home run race that captured the attention of a nation and may have helped to
revitalize the entire sport of baseball. It could be argued that the uniforms
of the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals were the most photographed
jerseys in the entire history of professional baseball as McGwire slugged 70
home runs to Sosa’s 66 - a feat that may not be repeated in our lifetimes.
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The Chicago Cubs: “There Are No Other Teams”
TRADITION…
MEMORIES… CLASSY…
Order Yours Today … and Revel in it!
800-786-3022
412-781-3022
E-mail:
greatestscapes@hotmail.com