If Your Birthday is September 18th...


...you share it with the late Baseball Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg.  In a deal that nearly parallels Fergie Jenkins, the promising Phillies infielder was traded after the 1981 season to the Cubs (along with Larry Bowa) for veteran shortstop Ivan deJesus.  The move worked short-term: with deJesus in the lineup, the "Wheeze Kids" won the '83 pennant before fading quickly.  After a slow start in Chicago, Sandberg's career took off against the Cardinals in the now-iconic NBC Game of the Week, where he twice homered to tie the game, which the Cubs won in 11 innings.  From there, it was a decade of stardom, with  10 consecutive All-Star appearances, nine consecutive Gold Gloves and a pair of division titles.

His baseball IQ and sustained success seemed to mark him as a future standout manager.  After leading the Phillies Lehigh Valley farm club to the playoffs in 2011, he was promoted to Charlie Manuel's coaching staff -- and succeeded him in August 2013.  But an again roster and barren minor league system produced a losing record and Sandberg resigned midway through the 2015 season.  

Returning to the Cubs as a good will ambassador, he saw his number 23 retired and a statue honoring him erected outside Wrigley Field before his death from cancer in 2025.

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