We here at The Popcorn Factory are proud to be from Chicago. What’s not to love? It’s such a powerhouse city that not one, but two grand-slammin’ MLB teams call it home. The electrifying crosstown rivalry between the Chicago Cubs and the Chicago White Sox has been sending shocks of high-voltage excitement through fans’ blood for ages. So grab a Cubs or Sox 3-Flavor Baseball Popcorn Tin and join in on the action: We’ve got all the fun facts you need to know about the Windy City’s most exhilarating teams!
Chicago Cubs Trivia
Today, the Cubs are one of the top five grossing teams in the MLB.
The Chicago Cubs are one of four major league baseball teams that do not have mascots.
The Cubs’ logo has been changed so many times over the years that no one really knows who designed it.
Before they were known as the Cubs, the team was also called the Chicago White Stockings, the Colts, the Black Stockings, the Orphans, the Rainmakers and the Cowboys. They didn’t get their modern-day name until 1902, when a newspaper reporter used the nickname “Cubs” to refer to the team in an article.
Every time the Cubs win a game at Wrigley Field, a flag printed with the letter “W” for “Win” is hoisted high above the scoreboard.
Only four Cubs uniform numbers have been retired: 14 (Ernie Banks), 10 (Ron Santos), 26 (Billy Williams) and 23 (Ryne Sandberg).
The Cubs were the first team ever to win two back-to-back World Series championships. They won their first series in 1907 and claimed victory again in 1908. However, they haven’t won a championship since then, though they did win National League titles in 2007 and 2008.
The Cubs didn’t start playing at Wrigley Field until 1916. They called five different parks home before they settled at Wrigley: 23rd Street Grounds, Lakefront Park, West Side Park, South Side Park, and West Side Grounds.
The first baseball game to ever be covered on the radio was aired on October 1, 1924, when the Cubs defeated the White Sox 10-7.
There are 42,157 seats in Wrigley Field, including standing room tickets.
On July 27, 1930, Wrigley Field hosted its biggest crowd ever: 51,556 fans. There were so many people that, in order to make everyone fit, visitors were allowed to stand along the outfield’s warning track.
Lights weren’t installed in Wrigley Field until after 1942, when the initial fixtures were donated to the war effort after the attack on Pearl Harbor.
In Game 4 of the 1945 World Series against the Detroit Tigers, the Cubs didn’t allow William Sianis—owner of the Billy Goat Tavern—to bring his lucky goat into Wrigley Field. Sianis angrily declared that the Cubs would never win a World Series again. So far, what’s known as “The Curse of the Billy Goat” has come true: The Cubs lost the series that year and every year after that.
The first regular season Cubs game to be broadcast on television was aired on April 20, 1946.
Sammy Sosa hit 33 home runs in his first season with the Cubs. Before he played with the Cubs, he hit 28 runs with the White Sox in fewer than three seasons. Continue reading
