With that in mind, you might remember that the Chicago Cubs didn't always have such a cuddly nickname. If you wind back the clock 120 years ago, the Chicago National League franchise lost their proverbial father when "Pop"Anson retired from our national pastime in 1897, after two decades of stewardship, as both a player and the manager of the team. By the time the 1898 seasons began, the newspapers in town adapted a new nickname for their beloved ballclub - the Orphans - a moniker which stuck around officially through 1902.
During my quest to complete my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection, I've acquired many cards of players from this tumultuous era in team history. In fact, most of them have already appeared on this blog, in one way or another. To mark Orphan Sunday, allow me to present to you the only such player who has yet to be properly spotlighted on Wrigley Roster Jenga:
Carl Lundgren earned a try-out with the Orphans on the strength of his stardom with the nearby University of Illinois, from which he graduated with a degree in civil engineering in 1902. His stardom on both the mound and the gridiron made him one of the premier amateur athletes in the state, at the time. Shortly after his graduation, Carl made his debut with the club on June 19th and he ended up twirling 17 complete games (18 appearances) and with a sterling ERA of 1.97.
Not bad, eh?
Lundgren was an early multi-sport star for the Fighting Illini.
The rookie would stick around with the franchise as part of a larger youth movement that lead to the Orphans moniker being dropped in favor of the Cubs. This "rebuild' somewhat mirrored the one in recent years and lead to three straight NL pennants and back-to-back World Series victories. Lundgren was a contributing member along the way, though he never made a postseason appearance, as an unheralded, but steady presence in a pitching rotation where "Three Finger" Brown, Jack Pfeister, Orval Overall, and Co. stole the spotlight. He was such an unappreciated member of that dynasty, that he had to file a grievance against the club to claim his $10,000 World Series bonus for 1908.
With a reputation for wilting in the summer heat, Lundgren earned a reputation as "the best cold-weather pitcher in the profession" by the Reach Baseball Guide. Come the warmer months, Carl's control problems would manifest in full and he often ranked near the top of the league in walks and hits per nine innings. By 1909, the Cubs had gotten all they could from Lundgren and he was let go on waivers, never to play in the Big Leagues again. That said, Lundgren did hang around the minors for a few years, before successfully transitioning to a second life as a collegiate coach in both baseball and football.
To this day, Lundgren is rightfully revered in his hometown of Marengo, IL, despite being a mostly forgotten man in Cubs/Orphans history.
The card which represents Lundgren in my collection hails from the 1906 National League Fan Craze set; of course, my copy is actually a reprint, but whatever. Fan Craze was an early baseball card game (an ancestor of MLB Showdown, if you will) that was originally released for the American League in 1904. The game was such a success that an NL version was printed up two years later.
According to PSA, the set is reminiscent of a deck of playing cards measuring 2-1/2” by 3-1/2” with rounded edges like a deck of cards. Each card features the player’s black-and-white portrait (some sources indicate the photography was the work of Charles Conlon) presented in an oval vignette and includes the player’s name beneath as well as his team." The backs for the AL version are blue, while they are red on the NL edition. Meanwhile, I can't determine for certain who exactly is responsible for my reprint version, but I believe it was printed up in 1990.
This CATRC addition was an Ebay purchase, an auction-win from long before the days of the blog. Perhaps I can chase down the real McCoy after a lottery win.
The portrait chosen for Lundgren on his Fan Craze single just screams "turn of the century" baseball. It's impossible to know for certain when this photograph was taken, but the ridiculously high collar on his wool jersey hints that the baby-faced Lundgren and his impeccable middle-part was in the early years of his Major League career. Perhaps this snapshot is actually from his rookie campaign, when the recent college graduate was a young Orphan, rather than a Cub?
Again, punctuating his lack of respect, Lundgren was saddled with being the "balk" card of the deck. Underappreciated starter on a World Series champ who often faded in the later months of the season and was left off the postseason roster? He was like that generation's Jason Hammel!
And that is the story behind Carl Lundgren and his 1906 Fan Craze baseball card (reprint) which resides in my Cubs All-Time Roster Collection binder. The man was a multi-sport maven at the University of Illinois, went on to engrave his name in history as one of the 1908 Chicago Cubs, and got his start in professional baseball as an Orphan.
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Footnote - I don't mean to denigrate the importance of Orphan Sunday by using it as an excuse to look back at a favorite baseball card. In honor of the occasion, you can donate to help the cause at CAFO's official website or find a way to volunteer your time to help these children in need.
I knew the Cubs were called the Orphans for a while, but I never knew why. Thanks for the history lesson!
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