The death of Ernie Banks Friday night leaves a hole in the hearts of Chicago Cubs fans that cannot be filled. One fan early Saturday paid respects at Wrigley Field.
While it’s possible other players loved baseball as much as Ernie Banks, it’s a safe bet that no one loved it more.
And few fan bases have loved a player the way fans of the Chicago Cubs loved Banks, the Hall of Fame shortstop and two-time National League Most Valuable Player who died Friday night at the age of 83.
One fan—the first of many—left flowers in the fence outside Wrigley Field as a tribute to the player known simply as “Mr. Cub.”
Banks never lost his enthusiasm for the game, despite never playing in the postseason over the course of a 19-year career with the Cubs that included 512 home runs and 14 All-Star selections.
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He was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1977 in his first year of eligibility.
Banks twice led the National League in home runs and twice in RBI, with five seasons of at least 40 home runs and eight years topping the 100-RBI mark.
Banks was known for his trademark phrase, “It’s a great day for baseball. Let’s play two!”
The latter part of that phrase is on his statue outside of Wrigley Field.
The Cubs could never put together a winner while Banks was with them from 1953-71, finishing worse than .500 in 13 of his 19 seasons with the club.
That didn’t stop the honors, culminated by his selection to Major League Baseball’s all-century team in 1999.
His No. 14 was the first number retired by the Cubs and he is still the franchise’s all-time career leader in games, at-bats, plate appearances and extra-base hits. He is second in home runs, hits and RBI.
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