The Ex-Cub factor, popularized by the late, great columnist Mike Royko, states that if a team in the World Series has three or more ex-Cubs, they will lose the series.
So how about this year?
It should be interesting...
The Braves have three ex-Cubs.
Soler is the only one of the three to have significant time with the Cubs. Chavez and Pederson were with the the team for less than a season. Chavez' tenure was short enough that no card showing him with the Cubs was ever made so I had to make one
The Astros have two, Brooks Raley and Martin Maldonado.
However, the Astros are led by..
...an ex Cub manager.
If you include Dusty in the count, then each team has three ex-Cubs.
I guess that means that no one will win the World Series!
Actually, the ex-Cub factor has been cited ten times since 1945. Seven of the ten teams that had the three or more ex-Cubs lost. They include some heavily favored teams like the 1981 Yankees, the 1990 Athletics, and the 2019 Astros.
The Astros have no ex-Mets. The Braves have two: Travis d'Arnaud, who spent quite a while in Queens, and Guillermo Heredia, who had only a short, forgettable stay.
ReplyDelete