Worth a Thousand Words: Buck O'Neil

John “Buck” O’Neil, who was (finally) elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame this week, became the first Black coach in the major leagues when he signed on with the Cubs in 1962. That was a significant accomplishment in its own right, but it ranks as little more than a footnote when one considers the full sweep of O’Neil’s career—which stretched from his first taste of semi-pro ball in 1924 (at age 12) to his retirement as a part-time scout in 2006 (the same year he passed away at 94).

BUCK O'NEIL AS A CUBS COACH.

     Much of O’Neil’s career was spent in the Negro American League, most notably as a player, manager, and executive with the Kansas City Monarchs. In the latter capacity, he helped engineer the Cubs’ acquisition of Ernie Banks from the Monarchs in 1953. He later served as a scout for the Cubs, signing Lou Brock, Oscar Gamble, Lee Smith, and Joe Carter, among others, and acting as a mentor and confidante to Billy Williams.

     In 1994, O’Neil stole the show in Ken Burns’s acclaimed PBS documentary series Baseball. His ebullient personality and riveting stories fascinated millions of people who had never heard of him before.

     Around the same time, he co-founded America’s Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City and donated his own personal memorabilia to get the museum started. 

     In 2005, the National Baseball Hall of Fame set up a special committee to select previously overlooked Negro Leagues players and owners for induction. Incredibly, O’Neil did not make the cut—but, generous even to a fault, he showed up on induction day at Cooperstown and spoke eloquently on behalf of the 16 men and one woman who were selected.

     “I’m not bitter,” O’Neil said at the time. “My grandfather was a slave. He was not bitter. I learned that from him. And you know what? I wouldn’t trade my life for anybody’s.” 

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Lou Brock, 1939 - 2020

Lou Brock was not quite 25 years old when the Cubs traded him to the St. Louis Cardinals for righthander Ernie Broglio on June 15, 1964. At the time of the trade, the Cubs were 27-27, in sixth place in the National League, and the Cardinals were 28-31, in eighth place.

    

LOU BROCK

The Cubs went 49-59 the rest of the way and finished eighth. Meanwhile, Brock hit a robust .348 for the Cardinals, sparking them to a 69-38 record for the remainder of the season. St. Louis won the pennant and then upset the New York Yankees in the World Series. 

     The Redbirds also won the world championship in 1967 and the National League pennant in 1968.

     Broglio, only 28 himself at the time of the trade, had already won 70 games for the Cardinals--including 21 in 1960 and 18 in 1963. He won only seven for the Cubs, while losing 19, and retired in 1966.
     When Brock retired after the 1979 season, he had accumulated over 3,000 hits, scored 1,600 runs, and was baseball's all-time leading base stealer (his stolen-base record was later broken by Rickey Henderson). Brock entered the Hall of Fame in 1985. He passed away yesterday at the age of 81.

     "If I'd been here [in Chicago]," Brock once said, "the Cubs would have won the pennant in '68 and '69." He was being immodest, but he was probably right.

 

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The Ones That Got Away: Lou Brock

     There have been many instances of players who were traded to Chicago early in what became illustrious careers. These include Doug Atkins, Mordecai "Three-Finger" Brown, Tony Esposito, Nellie Fox, Fergie Jenkins, Glenn Hall, Bob Love, Minnie Minoso, Ryne Sandberg, and Jerry Sloan.
     But it is the future stars who were traded from Chicago that stick achingly in our collective memory. There are about three dozen prominent examples of ones that got away from Chicago and went on to greater glory elsewhere. Among them are Hall-of-Famers George Blanda, Dennis Eckersley, Phil Esposito, Goose Gossage, Bobby Layne, and Rube Waddell.
     We will recall these from time to time, starting with the case that has lived in infamy above the others.
  

LOU BROCK

Lou Brock
Cubs, 1961 - 1964

     Lou Brock was not quite 25 years old when the Cubs traded him to the St. Louis Cardinals for pitcher Ernie Broglio on June 15, 1964. Brock hit a robust .348 for the remainder of the season, sparking the Cardinals to the world championship. The Redbirds also won the World Series in 1967 and the National League pennant in 1968.
     "If I'd been here [in Chicago]," Brock later said, "the Cubs would have won the pennant in '68 and '69." He was being immodest, but he was probably right.
     Broglio, only 28 himself at the time of the trade, had already won 70 games for the Cardinals--including 21 in 1960 and 18 in 1963. He won only seven for the Cubs, while losing 19, and retired in 1966.
     When Brock retired after the 1979 season, he had accumulated over 3,000 hits, scored 1,600 runs, and was baseball's all-time leading base stealer (his stolen-base record was later broken by Rickey Henderson). Brock entered the Hall of Fame in 1985.