Jewel Week: September 5, 1969

The usual Jewel ad didn't run on Monday, September 1, because that was Labor Day and all the stores were closed.  It wasn't until Friday, September 5, that we got to see who the featured Cubs were.

The wait didn't bother anyone.  All that Jewel had left were hatless bench guys.  Like the Cubs lead, the ad size was shrinking.

The Cubs as a team had little left, too.

This was the last week that the Cubs would spend in first place.  They were in free-fall mode.  On Friday, September 5, the Cubs lost to the Pirates 9-2.  It was the second of what would become an eight game losing streak.  By September 10 they were in second place.

Popovich was reacquired by the Cubs in a three way trade with the Expos and Dodgers.

Jim Qualls got his 15 minutes of fame on July 9, 1969, as he broke up Tom Seaver's perfect game bid with two outs in the ninth inning.  He was in the lineup because this was the day after Don Young had flubbed two balls the night before and Leo benched Young.

Hank Aguirre was a forgotten man in the bullpen.  He did pitch on September 5 and lowered his ERA to 1.99.  Makes you wonder why he got such little action.

Rich Nye had been with the Cubs since 1966 so it seems odd that he gets a hatless head shot.  He made just nine appearances during the final two months of the season.