Chicago Cubs: Forgotten players who suited up in 2016

Chicago Cubs: Even for just a game or a few innings, we will recognize players who, at some point, played in a game with the eventual 2016 World Champion Cubs

No doubt, Chicago Cubs fans who witnessed the 2016 championship will forget about any of the players that were on the World Series roster, or any of the other postseason rosters that year for that matter. The regular season that year was pretty unforgettable as a whole, but over a long 162 game campaign, smaller moments can get lost in our collective memories. It is tough to remember who did what in a 162 games season, even if it was a historical one.

Like every team in the history of baseball, the 2016 Cubs had their share of guys who came in to be temporary fixes and experiments to see if the value can be salvaged on a gamble. Also, like every team ever, some of these players would only spend a very brief time with the club and were gone as soon as they came. Some of these guys were well-known older veterans and others were minor leaguers little fans knew of.

For the most die-hard of Cubs fans, you will remember some of, if not all, of them in some capacity. Others might have to be either reminded of some of the names or will now learn something new about the 2016 team. Here are several players you might have forgotten suited up for the Cubs in the 2016 season.

Chicago Cubs: He had a great run early on before injuries in 2014

In the latter days of the rebuild, reliever Neil Ramirez was putting on a show. Then a 25-year old Ramirez put up a 1.44 ERA, 2.61 FIP, 1.1 WHIP and 10.9 K/9 in 43.2 innings in 2014. Unfortunately, the injury issues came his days as a Cub were numbered. He pitched in 19 innings in 2015, putting up a 3.21 ERA which is where the memories of him as a Cub typically fade

However, he did have one last hurrah in 2016 with the Cubs…it was very brief. He appeared in eight games and pitched in 7 2/3 innings with them. He gave up four runs, walked eight, and struck out 10 batters. His appearances as a Cub were in April and May when the team was steamrolling their opponents. Ramirez was then put on waivers and the Milwaukee Brewers selected him.

Since his final days as a Cub he has been with the following MLB organizations: Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Washington Nationals and Cleveland Indians. He pitched in 22 games last year with the Jays and Indians.

So yes, Ramirez is not forgotten as a Cub, but it can be easy to forget he played for them in 2016. It would be cool to see Ramirez find a long-term home and do well again; he had excellent stuff when he came up.

Chicago Cubs: This is one guy a lot of fans might not remember when mentioned. But he did indeed play for the 2016 Cubs

At the time of his MLB debut in 2016, Gerardo Concepcion was 24 years old and had been in the Cubs organization since signing an amateur free agent in 2012. Concepcion had an up-and-down minor-league career before his debut with the Cubs on June 21st against the Cardinals, where he threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings.

Concepcion would make two more appearances on June 25th and June 26th before returning to Triple A. That brief stint was all we saw of Concepcion in the majors, just a total of 2.1 innings. He remained with the organization until being released in May 2017.

Not much else to say, this is a name most probably do not remember, but hey, he has pitched more MLB innings than all of our fans and gets to say he was part of a special team.

Chicago Cubs: There was a fourth player to play behind the dish in 2016

The catchers of 2016: Miguel Montero, David Ross, Willson Contreras. Wait, there is one more! Tim Federowicz.

Federowicz was brought in on a minor league deal during the offseason as virtually the emergency catcher/September roster expansion depth. He had played in 89 MLB games from 2011-2014 with the Los Angeles Dodgers before coming to the Cubs organization. While he only ended up playing a total of 17 games in 2016 with the Cubs, he had multiple stints. He was up most of May, a few games in June and in late September/October.

Old “FedEx” hit .194/.212/.258 with three RBI and two doubles with the Cubs. In a game against the Padres, he hit an RBI double off the wall. Fun fact he was the starting catcher in the game they tied with the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 29th.

He has bounced around a bit since and is currently with the Texas Rangers organization.

Chicago Cubs: He pitched his last days in the majors as a Chicago Cub in 2016

Late June/early July was that one point in the 2016 season, where the mighty Cubs were struggling pretty severely. It was also the time when veteran Joel Peralta was briefly a Cub.

At the time, Peralta was 40 and was brought over mid-season after the Mariners cut him. Peralta had himself an overall solid career, pitching 12 seasons in the majors with a 4.03 ERA and 1.2 WHIP in 620 games. From 2010-2013 he made 266 appearances and pitched to a 3.07 ERA and struck out 268 hitters. Fans who followed the game close recognize the name, but it is easy to forget his time in 2016 with the Cubs.

As a Cub, he appeared in five games and pitched only four innings. He surrendered four earned runs and six hits on those appearances. His final game with the Cubs and majors was on July 5th against the Reds.

Maybe you remember these guys, and perhaps you don’t. But they have the unique honor of being part of a historic season nobody who witnessed it will forget. Yes, writing during no sports is very hard.