Infield: Phil Cavarretta (1934-55) joined the Cubs at age 17, became the starting first baseman at age 18 and played for the team until his mid-30s. He batted .293, won an MVP award in 1945, once reached base five times in an all-star game. He played in three World Series and batted .317 in them. Legendary Chicago columnist Mike Royko, who loved the Cubs as much as anyone ever did, idolized Cavarretta but also described, in dismay, how Cavarretta tried to viciously spike Jackie Robinson in 1947. Second baseman Pete Coscarart (1938-46) was a weak hitter but a decent fielder. Third baseman Pete Castiglione (1947-54) was a .255 hitter, but toward the end of his career he made his niche as a pinch-hitter, batting .290 in that role. He's a starter on this outfit. Shortstop Pelayo Chacon, a Cuban who starred in the Negro Leagues, was a spectacular defensive player and a speedy slap hitter.
Outfield: Left fielder Pat Carney (1901-04) batted .270 with 27 steals for the Boston Beaneaters in 1902, but he was basically a .240 hitter with no power so he didn't stick around long. A well-respected guy, he later coached at Holy Cross. His nickname was "Doc," and they must have known something, because he ultimately became a physician. Center fielder Pete Compton (1911-18) was actually named Anna Sebastian Compton, and nicknamed "Bash." He was a .300 hitter in a long minor-league career, but in the majors he just bounced around a bit and batted .240 career. Right fielder Pop Corkhill (1883-92) was a regular on those early Cincinnati Red Stockings teams. He seems to have been a fine player who ran well and occasionally pitched when his team needed an arm.
Catcher: Paul Casanova (1965-74) was a gregarious Cuban with a strong arm. He ran fairly well but was nonetheless 2-for-12 as a base stealer, and he batted .225 but once hit 13 home runs in a season.
Rotation: Phil Collins (1923-35) was known as "Fidgety Phil," and you'd have been fidgety on the mound, too, if you pitched in the Baker Bowl and had the 1930s Phillies defense behind you. He was a decent pitcher on some bad teams, and he won 80 games. Pat Caraway (1930-32) was a lanky, 6-foot-4 guy with an odd windup in which he would almost bend in half. He lost 24 games in 1931, went 22-40 in his career. Lefty Pat Combs (1989-92) was a first-round draft pick out of Baylor who shot through the minors in less than a year, arrived in Philadelphia at the end of the '89 season and set the world on fire with his first six starts (4-0, 2.09 ERA, 30 strikeouts and 6 walks). That was as good as it got, though. He was 10-10 the next year and went downhill fast. He was out of baseball before he turned 30. Pete Conway (1885-89) was in the majors at age 18 and done by 23 because of arm trouble. In between, he pitched and played some outfield for the Detroit Wolverines, who won the National League title in 1890. At age 21, he pitched 390 innings, won 30 games and apparently wrecked his arm. Went on to become the first official baseball coach at University of Michigan. Paul Carter (1914-20) did some starting and some relieving for the Indians and the Cubs and was a very ordinary pitcher.
Bullpen: Lefty Pat Clements (1985-92) was a pretty good pitcher for five different teams. He saved a dozen games in his career, which makes him the closer on this team. Phil Coke (2008- ) was a middle reliever on the Yankees' championship team of 2009. Paul Calvert (1942-51) went 6-17 in 1949, leading the AL in losses, en route to a career record of 9-22. Pete Cimino (1965-68) was actually a pretty good pitcher, but it's more interesting to note that he once scored 114 points in a high school basketball game. Pete Center (1942-46) was a nondescript minor-leaguer who got a shot in the majors during World War II. His full name is Marvin Earl Center, which sounds like the name of a basketball gym on the campus of a Div. III college (As in, "The Bison play tonight at 7 p.m. at the Marvin Earl Center"). Pete Charton (1964) went 8-10 at Single-A in 1963, so naturally he spent all of '64 in the majors with the Red Sox. He got hit hard and never made it back to the bigs. Pasqual Coco (2000-02) never could get hitters out in the majors, but he's still pitching in the Mexican League.
Bench: Catcher Pat Collins (1919-29) batted eighth on the Murderers' Row Yankees. Shortstop Putsy Caballero (1944-52), who has one of the great names in baseball history, was in the majors with the Phillies at age 16 and picked up a few at-bats here and there until he started getting regular playing time at age 20. Never much of a hitter (that's a charitable assessment), he stuck around as a utility infielder and pinch-runner. Outfielder Phil Clark (1992-96) had 543 career at-bats and wasn't half-bad - .276 with 30 doubles and 17 homers. Outfielder Paul Campbell (1941-50) might have had a career if World War II hadn't interfered. He was a .300 hitter in the minors, and he hit alright in 255 at-bats for the Tigers in 1949 at age 31. Overall, he batted .255 as a reserve, but spent many years scouting and working various front-office jobs after his playing career was done. Pat Crawford (1929-34) was a terrific minor-league hitter whose last appearance in the majors was as a spare part on the Gas House Gang Cardinals who won the World Series in '34.
Manager: Pat Corrales couldn't make this team as a catcher, but he'll fill out the lineup card each day. Managed the Indians, Phillies and Rangers. He was fired by the Phillies at midseason 1983, and his replacement, Paul Owens, took the team to the NL pennant.
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