Chicago Cubs: 25 best all-time players in franchise history

Chicago Cubs Greatest All-Time Players: No. 19 – Bob Rush

WAR: 39.5

Big right-hander Bob Rush had himself quite the run. He spent 10 years with the Cubs before finishing his career by spending a year apiece with the Milwaukee Braves and the Chicago White Sox.

It’s pretty wild that a guy who had a 110-140 career record with Chicago ranks as the 20th-most valuable player in franchise history. But it goes to show that wins and losses clearly aren’t the most effective way to value pitchers, either.

In 1950, his third year in the league, Rush earned the first All-Star nod of his career. Heading into the All-Star Break, the right-hander carried a 3.55 ERA to go along with his 9-8 record. But he went 4-12 in the second half, despite a still-above average 4.02 ERA (league average was 4.36 that year), thus muddying his baseball card line for that year.

You can’t look past his 19 complete games in 1950 – a feat he accomplished 118 times in his big league career. His best single-season showing came in 1952 when Rush won 17 games and pitched to a 2.70 ERA – going the distance in more than half of his 32 starts. Really, they just don’t make pitchers like that anymore.

Accomplishments & Awards

• Two-time All-Star