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4. Ron Santo

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4. Ron Santo
  1. General
  2. Awards
  3. Career Stats
  • Born: February 25, 1940 in Seattle, WA USA
  • Weight: 190 lbs.
  • Height: 6'0"
  • Bats: R
  • Throws: R
  • Debut: June 26, 1960
  • Final Game: September 29, 1974
  • Gold Glove - 1964
  • Gold Glove - 1965
  • Gold Glove - 1966
  • TSN All-Star - 1966
  • Gold Glove - 1967
  • TSN All-Star - 1967
  • Gold Glove - 1968
  • TSN All-Star - 1968
  • TSN All-Star - 1969
  • TSN All-Star - 1972
  • Lou Gehrig Memorial Award - 1973
  • MVP - 1963
  • MVP - 1964
  • MVP - 1965
  • MVP - 1966
  • MVP - 1967
  • MVP - 1968
  • MVP - 1969
  • Rookie of the Year - 1960
 
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Ron Santo would crack the Majors with the Cubs in 1960, and the Third Baseman would quickly establish himself as one of the premier men at the hot corner, both with his bat and glove over the next decade-plus.  Santo would tabulate an impressive 2,171 Hits as a Cub and even more impressively knew the art of getting on base.  Santo led the NL in Walks four times and was a two-time leader in On Base Percentage.

He could not just get on base, but he also knew how to clear them.  Santo went yard 337 times as a Cub, and he would exceed 100 RBIs four times.  Defensively, he was among the best with five Gold Gloves, four seasons leading his position in Total Zone Runs.

Santo made history by being the first person to veto a trade under the 10 and 5 rule (10 years in the majors, 5 with the same team) by declining to go to California but would accept one to the crosstown White Sox but would retire after one year.  He would return to the Cubs as an announcer and the self-proclaimed biggest Cubs fan ever.

One of the biggest Cooperstown-related travesties was that Ron Santo, who died in 2010, was not inducted into the Hall until 2012 when the Veteran's Committee chose him.  Many in Chicago will never forgive those in Cooperstown for that error.  The Cubs did however honor Santo when he was alive, by retiring his number 10 in 2003, and he was inducted into the first class of the Cubs Hall of Fame in 2021.

The Bullet Points

  • Position: Third Base
  • Acquired: Signed as an Amateur Free Agent before the 1959 Season.
  • Departed: Traded to the Chicago White Sox for Ken Frailing, Steve Stone, Steve Swisher, and a Player to be Named Later (which would be Jim Kremmel 12/11/73.
  • Games Played: 2126
  • Notable Statistics: 1,199 Runs Scored
    2,171 Hits
    353 Doubles
    66 Triples
    337 Home Runs
    1,290 Runs Batted In
    35 Stolen Bases
    .279/.366/.472 Slash Line
    72.1 bWAR

    No Playoff Games
  • Major Accolades and Awards:

    All-Star (1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972 & 1973)
    Gold Glove (1964, 1965, 1966, 1967 & 1968)
    Highest bWAR for Position Players (1967)
    Highest On Base Percentage (1964 & 1966)
    Most Walks (1964, 1966, 1967 & 1968)
    Most Sacrifice Flies (1963, 1967 & 1969)
    Most Putouts by a Third Baseman (1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967 & 1969)
    Most Assists by a Third Baseman (1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967 & 1968)
    Most Double Plays Turned by a Third Baseman (1965, 1966, 1967 & 1968)
    Most Total Zone Runs by a Third Baseman (1965, 1966, 1967 & 1968)
    Highest Range Factor per Game by a Third Baseman (1961, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967 & 1968)
    Highest Fielding Percentage by a Third Baseman (1968)
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