At this past weekend’s Cubs Con, the organization made an announcement involving two Wrigleyville greats. Kerry Wood and Aramis Ramirez will join 61 other Cub greats in the Cubs Hall of Fame for their significant contributions on the north side of Chicago.
Aramis Ramírez and Kerry Wood will be inducted into the Chicago Cubs Hall of Fame! pic.twitter.com/XDSv0YrBGB
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) January 13, 2024
Kerry Wood and Aramis Ramirez to Enter Cubs Hall of Fame
Kid K Gets the Nod
A Cub for 12 years, Kerry Wood had some incredible moments in Chicago that captured the hearts of fans everywhere. The Cubs selected the Irving, Texas native with the fourth overall pick of the 1995 MLB Draft. He possessed a career ERA of 3.67 as a Cub across 1,380 innings pitched. Wood was the National League Rookie of the Year in 1998, and made two career All-Star Game appearances.
Wood is most famously known for his 20-strikeout game he hurled against the Houston Astros back on May 6, 1998. It was just Wood’s fifth career start and the rookie tied the major league record for most punchouts in a contest. It was at this moment fans knew Wood was a special piece to the puzzle in the organization.
Wood spent two years with the Cleveland Guardians and one with the New York Yankees outside of his time in Chicago.
The Electric Factory that is A-Ram
While he spent his career with three clubs in the NL Central for 18 seasons, Aramis Ramirez spent nine of them in Chicago. In those nine seasons, Ramirez clubbed 239 homers and drove in 806 runs. His 239 homers as a Cub rank seventh all-time in team history. Ramirez had three consecutive seasons, spanning from 2004-2006, where he hit over 30 homers a season. He won his lone Silver Slugger award in 2011, his final year with the team.
Ramirez currently sits third in franchise history in slugging (.531) and fifth in OPS (.887). He spent four seasons with the Milwaukee Brewers and seven with the Pittsburgh Pirates, so the Cubs still saw plenty of him even when he wasn’t on their side.
The club has yet to announce exactly when the induction of Wood and Ramirez will take place this season.
Photo Credit: “Kerry Wood coming on to pitch” by mikelachance816 is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
