Five Random Cubs Cards

I've got 9,566 Cubs cards from 60 different brands listed on a spreadsheet. A random number generator picked five cards, one each from the past several decades.

1950s / 1960s: Topps 1959 #118 Art Ceccarelli The Cubs picked Ceccarelli up from the Orioles after the 1958 season in the Rule 5 draft. He spent the first half of the '59 season at Fort Worth, and then joined the Cubs in July. He started 15 games and was 5-5 with a 4.76 ERA. The highlight of his season was a 3-0 ten inning shutout against the Dodgers on September 6.

1970s: Topps 1979 #299 Steve Ontiveros The 1979 season would be his last season as a regular. He put up decent numbers, hitting .285 with 57 RBIs. The next season he slumped badly, hitting only .208 before the Cubs released him in late June.

1980s: Fleer Record Setters 1988 #10 Andre Dawson I picked up this card as part of my Dawson player collection. There were 44 cards in the set that Fleer produced for the Eckerd drug store chain. Though the set is called "Record Setters," there is not mention on the card of any specific record that he set.

1990s: Donruss 1998 #133 Kevin Orie The late 1990s version of the "Third baseman for years to come" lasted only a season and a half. He was below the Mendoza line in 1998, hitting a mere .181 when the Cubs gave up on him and sent him to the Marlins on July 31.

2000s: Topps 2006 #447 Jacque Jones I was excited when the Cubs signed Jones for the 2006 season. He had put up solid numbers with the Twins the past several seasons and the hope was that he would settle in as the Cubs right fielder. But Jim Hendry seemed to have a knack for signing guys right as they peaked and then they began their downward slide with the Cubs. Jones got off to a very slow start and the Cubs fans got on him quickly. There was talk of racist remarks coming out of the bleachers, and Jones never really caught on. He did end up with 27 HRs and a .285 average, but the next season he slumped badly and by 2008 he was finished.