1998 Chicago Cubs season


The 1998 Chicago Cubs season was the 127th season of the Chicago Cubs franchise, the 123rd in the National League and the 83rd at Wrigley Field. The Cubs finished second in the National League Central with a record of 90–73.
The season was a significant one for the team for several reasons. Firstly, it saw the Cubs reach the playoffs for the first time since 1989 by way of a Wild Card berth, which they clinched after winning a one-game playoff against the San Francisco Giants. The Cubs, however, would lose the [1998 National League (baseball)|National League Division Series|NLDS] in a 3–0 sweep by the Atlanta Braves. The season also saw Sammy Sosa, along with Mark McGwire, surpass the existing single-season home run record of 61. Sosa would hold the home run lead at several points over the course of the season, eventually finishing four homers behind McGwire. The 1998 season also saw the debut of Kerry Wood, who drew immediate national attention because of a 20-strikeout performance in his fifth career start, a 13-6 record over 26 starts, and more than 12 strikeouts per nine innings pitched.

Offseason

Harry Caray

On February 18, 1998, Cubs broadcaster Harry Caray died. Caray had the benefit of being in the booth during the NL East title run in 1984, when being a Cub fan became more popular to Chicagoans. His trademark call of "Holy Cow!" and his singing of "Take me out to the ballgame" during the 7th inning stretch made Caray a fan favorite both locally and, thanks to WGN's superstation status, on a national level as well.
The Cubs still have a live singer, usually a celebrity, during the 7th inning stretch to honor Caray's memory to this day. Caray is also honored with a statue located at the corner of Sheffield and Addison streets, and during the 1998 season, a patch with Caray's caricature and Brickhouse's trademark "Hey Hey" were worn on the players sleeves to honor the passing of both commentators within a span of a few months. Harry's popularity also led to his grandson Chip Caray joining the broadcast team in winter of 1997, shortly before Harry's death.

Notable transactions

Regular season

  • May 6, 1998 – Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood struck out 20 Houston Astros tying the major league record and setting a new National League record. Wood accomplished this feat in only his fifth major league start.
  • September 8, 1998 – Cubs pitcher Steve Trachsel gave up Mark McGwire's 62nd home run of the season. The home run would break the record set by Roger Maris for most home runs in a season.
  • September 13, 1998 – Sammy Sosa hits home runs number 61 and 62 tying McGwire in the home run race in the Cubs 11-10 win over Milwaukee.
  • September 23, 1998 – In a tie with the New York Mets for the lead in the NL Wild Card standings with three games remaining, the Cubs held a 7-5 lead in the bottom of the 9th inning in a crucial game against the Milwaukee Brewers, but the Brewers had the bases loaded with two out. Closer Rod Beck delivered to Geoff Jenkins, and he hit an easy fly ball to left fielder Brant Brown. But Brown dropped the ball and it skipped past him. This error allowed three runs to score, including the winning run, and the Brewers pulled off an 8-7 victory.
In the final game of the season, with the Cubs and Giants tied for the Wild Card lead, a Terry Mulholland throwing error cost the Cubs a victory against the Houston Astros, as San Francisco held an early lead in Colorado, and the team's playoff hopes were in jeopardy. However, a Neifi Pérez walk-off home run gave the Rockies a win and forced a one-game playoff at Wrigley Field.

Notable transactions

Player stats

Batting

Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
PosPlayerGABHAvg.HRRBI
CScott Servais11332572.222736
1BMark Grace158595184.3091789
2BMickey Morandini154582172.296853
SSJeff Blauser11936179.219426
3BJosé Hernández149488124.2542375
LFHenry Rodríguez128415104.2513185
CFLance Johnson8530485.280221
RFSammy Sosa159643198.30866158

Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
PlayerGABHAvg.HRRBI
Brant Brown124347101.2911448
Manny Alexander10826460.227525
Tyler Houston9525565.255933
Kevin Orie6420437.181221
Glenallen Hill4813146.351823
Gary Gaetti3712841.320827
Matt Mieske779729.299112
458723.26407
Pedro Valdés14235.21702
Jason Hardtke18215.23802
Terrell Lowery24153.20001
Orlando Merced12103.30015
11101.10012
Jason Maxwell731.33312
210.00000

Pitching

Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO
Kevin Tapani35219.01994.85139
Mark Clark33213.29144.84161
33208.01584.46149
26166.21363.40233
20110.0775.3270
Mike Morgan522.2017.1510

Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGIPWLERASO
Don Wengert2149.2155.0741

Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
PlayerGWLSVERASO
Rod Beck8134513.0281
Terry Mulholland706532.8972
637714.3373
Marc Pisciotta431204.0931
Bob Patterson331117.5217
Dave Stevens311204.7431
303004.0816
Matt Karchner293105.1422
Amaury Telemaco141103.9018
Rodney Myers120007.0015
Ben Van Ryn90003.386
Tony Fossas80009.006
Chris Haney50007.204
Kennie Steenstra400010.804
Kurt Miller30000.006
Kevin Foster300016.203
Justin Speier100013.502

Postseason

Wild Card tie-breaker game

One-game playoff to break tie in regular season standings
Chicago Cubs 5, San Francisco Giants 3

Division Series

NL Division Series
Atlanta Braves 7, Chicago Cubs 1

Atlanta Braves 2, Chicago Cubs 1

Atlanta Braves 6, Chicago Cubs 2
Braves win series 3-0

Awards and honors

'''All-Star Game'''