I distinctly remember the first time I went to see the Cubs play at Wrigley Field as a youngster.
My late father, Marshall, and my mother, Lila, took my brother, Bruce, and me to see the Cubs play the Atlanta Braves on a beautiful June day.
I can see the green grass and the ivy in all its glory and the Cubs going through their warmups before the game began. I was instantly captivated and hooked for life.
This was going to be my team.
Little did I know that at that moment, my life was about to be filled with a stunning amount of losing from my favorite team.
My brother was just as caught up in the emotion of that day. He picked the White Sox as his team and it began a lifelong rivalry, the memories of which he and I treasure to this day. Both of us have seen our team win a World Series when we both wondered if we would ever experience that glorious moment. Both of us have seen our share of amazing players and sensational moments.
On what would've been Ernie Banks' 87th birthday, here is my idea of The 10 Greatest Cubs of my lifetime:
MLB
10. Anthony Rizzo
9. Kris Bryant
8. Andre Dawson
7. Greg Maddux
6. Ron Santo
5. Sammy Sosa
4. Ryne Sandberg
3. Fergie Jenkins
2. Billy Williams
1. Ernie Banks
Who are the Top 5 Cubs of your lifetime? Where do guys like Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant fit in? And what will that list look 20 years from now, in 2038?
We debated on the latest CubsTalk Podcast:
And here is everybody else's list of the Top 5 Cubs of their lifetime:
Kelly Crull
1. Ryne Sandberg
2. Andre Dawson
3. Greg Maddux
4. Bryzzo
5. Jake Arrieta
Tony Andracki
1. Sammy Sosa
2. Mark Grace
3. Derrek Lee
4. Ryne Sandberg
5. Jake Arrieta
Jon Graff
1. Andre Dawson
2. Sammy Sosa
3. Greg Maddux
4. Ryne Sandberg
5. Bryzzo