The Top 15 Starting Pitchers in Chicago Cubs Franchise History

Next up in my top Cubs series, I'm ranking starting pitchers—and the Cubs certainly have had some great ones over the years.

While they may have not had many of the best in the last half-century, the Cubs had hands down the best pitching of the dead-ball era, and there are a number of old timers on this list.

While these rankings are subjective, I looked at each pitcher's career numbers with the Cubs, as well as how they performed in their top seasons.

I hope you are enjoying this series, and if this is the first one you have read, I encourage you to read the previous six in the series.

No. 15: Carlos Zambrano—2001-Now

Cubs Career Totals: 99-63, 3.50 ERA, 1,218 Ks
2004: 16-8, 2.75 ERA, 188 Ks, All-Star
2006: 16-7, 3.41 ERA, 210 Ks, All-Star
2007: 18-13, 3.95 ERA, 177 Ks

The current ace of the staff, and a Cub his entire career, Zambrano is one of the best pitchers in the game right now. That is, when he can control his emotions.

Zambrano is a three-time All-Star and a three-time Silver Slugger winner as well, as he is one of the best hitting pitchers out there.

No. 14: Rick Sutcliffe—1984-1991

Cubs Career Totals: 82-65, 3.74 ERA, 909 Ks
1984: 16-1, 2.69 ERA, 155 Ks, Cy Young
1987: 18-10, 3.68 ERA, 174 Ks, All-Star

The 1984 season stats say it all, as he singlehandedly led the Cubs to the playoffs behind his incredible 16-1 record in 20 starts, including seven complete games and three shutouts. By far one of the best midseason trades in baseball history.

He also finished second in the Cy Young voting in 1987, as his 18 wins were the most in the National League.

No. 13: Rick Reuschel—1972-1981, 1983-1984

Cubs Career Totals: 135-127, 3.50 ERA, 1,367 Ks
1977: 20-10, 2.79 ERA, 166 Ks, All-Star
1979: 18-12, 3.62 ERA, 125 Ks

Reushcel was a workhorse, starting at least 35 games every year from 1973-1980 and throwing at least 235 innings every year in the process.

His 1977 season was the best of his 19-year, 214-win career as he had career highs in wins, ERA, and strikeouts while finishing third in Cy Young voting.

No. 12: Grover Cleveland Alexander—1918-1926

Cubs Career Totals: 128-93, 2.84 ERA, 614 Ks, 159 CG
Hall of Fame
1919: 16-11, 1.72 ERA, 121 Ks, 20 CG, 9 SHO
1920: 27-14, 1.91 ERA, 173 Ks, 33 CG, 7 SHO
1923: 22-12, 3.19 ERA, 72 Ks, 26 CG, 3 SHO

The Hall of Famer did not come to the Cubs until he was 31 years old and had the best seasons of his career with the Phillies.

Still, he put up great numbers, even up to his last year with the Cubs, when he went 15-11 at the age of 38.

His 373 career wins are third best all-time, and he is one of the best pitchers in baseball history.

No. 11: Orval Overall—1906-1910, 1913

Cubs Career Totals: 86-43, 1.91 ERA, 729 Ks, 95 CG
1907: 23-7, 1.68 ERA, 141 Ks, 26 CG
1908: 15-11, 1.92 ERA, 167 Ks, 16 CG
1909: 20-11, 1.42 ERA, 205 Ks, 23 CG

A great athlete who was also an All-American football player at the University of California-Berkeley, Overall stepped up when it mattered most.

He went a combined 3-0 with a 0.99 ERA, 26 Ks, and three CGs in his five World Series appearances in 1907 and 1908.

He won Game Five to clinch the last Cubs World Series title in 1908, pitching a three-hit shutout in the process.

No. 10: Bill Hutchinson—1889-1895

Cubs Career Totals: 181-158, 3.56 ERA, 1,224 Ks, 317 CG
1890: 42-25, 2.70 ERA, 289 Ks, 603 IP, 65 CG
1891: 44-19, 2.81 ERA, 261 Ks, 561 IP, 56 CG
1892: 36-36, 2.76 ERA, 314 Ks, 622 IP, 67 CG

The man pitched 622 innings in 1892, and he had an off year in the process by winning only 36 games.

The definition of a dead ball era pitcher, Hutchinson captured three consecutive wins titles with the Cubs despite competing with guys like Cy Young and Walter Johnson for the title.

His career did not start until the age of 29, or he may have been one of the winningest pitchers of all time.

No. 9: Hippo Vaughn—1913-1921

Cubs Career Totals: 151-105, 2.33 ERA, 1138 Ks
1914: 21-13, 2.05 ERA, 165 Ks, 23 CG
1915: 20-12, 2.87 ERA, 148 Ks, 18 CG
1916: 17-15, 2.20 ERA, 144 Ks, 21 CG
1917: 23-13, 2.01 ERA, 195 Ks, 27 CG
1918: 22-10, 1.74 ERA, 148 Ks, 27 CG
1919: 21-14, 1.79 ERA, 141 Ks, 25 CG
1920: 19-16, 2.54 ERA, 131 Ks, 24 CG

Quite possibly the best left-hander in Cubs franchise history, Vaughn was a model of consistency in his time with the Cubs.

He was the Cubs' ace in the years right after the glory days of the late 1900s, and he won a lot of games for subpar Cubs teams.

No. 8: Clark Griffith—1893-1900

Cubs Career Totals: 152-96, 3.40 ERA, 572 Ks, 240 CG
Hall of Fame
1894: 21-14, 4.92 ERA, 71 Ks, 28 CG
1895: 26-14, 3.93 ERA, 79 Ks, 39 CG
1896: 23-11, 3.54 ERA, 81 Ks, 35 CG
1897: 21-18, 3.72 ERA, 102 Ks, 38 CG
1898: 24-10, 1.88 ERA, 97 Ks, 36 CG
1899: 22-14, 2.79 ERA, 73 Ks, 35 CG

The Hall of Famer and eventual manager/owner of the Washington Senators, Griffith was well known for doctoring the ball and is the creator of the screwball.

He had the bulk of his 237 career wins with the Cubs and was a model of consistency in his time with the North Siders.

No. 7: Greg Maddux—1986-1992, 2004-2006

Cubs Career Totals: 133-112, 3.61 ERA, 1305 Ks
Gold Gloves: 5
1988: 18-8, 3.18 ERA, 140 Ks, All-Star
1989: 19-12, 2.95 ERA, 135 Ks
1992: 20-11, 2.18 ERA, 199 Ks, All-Star, Cy Young

The one that got away, the Cubs were unwilling to give Maddux the big payday he deserved following his Cy Young season in his 1992 contract year.

He only went on to be arguably the best pitcher of the past 25 years, racking up the Cy Youngs in Atlanta.

That said, he still enjoyed a great deal of success in Chicago.

No. 6: Charlie Root—1926-1941

Cubs Career Totals: 201-156, 3.55 ERA, 1,432 Ks, 177 CG
Cubs Career Win Leader
1926: 18-17, 2.82 ERA, 127 Ks
1927: 26-15, 3.76 ERA, 145 Ks
1929: 19-6, 3.47 ERA, 124 Ks

The Cubs' career leader in wins, Root spent his entire 19-year career with the Cubs and reached double-digit victories in 10 of those seasons.

His 26 victories in 1927 were an NL high, and he also recorded 40 saves during his Cubs tenure.

No. 5: Ed Reulbach—1905-1913

Cubs Career Totals: 136-65, 2.24 ERA, 799 Ks, 150 CG
1905: 18-14, 1.42 ERA, 152 Ks, 28 CG
1906: 19-4, 1.65 ERA, 94 Ks, 20 CG
1907: 17-4, 1.69 ERA, 96 Ks, 16 CG
1908: 24-7, 2.03 ERA, 133 Ks, 25 CG
1909: 19-10, 1.78 ERA, 105 Ks, 23 CG

The No. 2 pitcher on the 1907 and 1908 World Series teams, Reulbach's winning percentage may be his most impressive stat of all, as he won 68 percent of his decisions during his time with the Cubs.

He led the NL in winning percentage three straight times from 1906-1908 while pitching in Mordecai Brown's shadow.

No. 4: John Clarkson—1884-1887

Cubs Career Totals: 137-57, 2.39 ERA, 960 Ks, 186 CG
Hall of Fame
1885: 53-16, 1.85 ERA, 308 Ks, 623 IP, 68 CG, 10 SHO
1886: 36-17, 2.41 ERA, 313 Ks, 466.2 IP, 50 CG
1887: 38-21, 3.08 ERA, 237 Ks, 523 IP, 56 CG

In three-plus years with the team, Clarkson tallied more career wins than all but nine other Cubs. That was thanks in large part to his insane 1885 season.

His 53 wins are the second highest single-season total ever, behind Charley Radbourn, who logged 59 wins in 1884.

No. 3: Larry Corcoran—1880-1885

Cubs Career Totals: 175-85, 2.26 ERA, 1,086 Ks, 256 CG
1880: 43-14, 1.95 ERA, 268 Ks, 536.1 IP, 57 CG
1881: 31-14, 2.31 ERA, 150 Ks, 396.2 IP, 43 CG
1882: 27-12, 1.95 ERA, 170 Ks, 355.2 IP, 38 CG
1883: 34-20, 2.49 ERA, 216 Ks, 473.2 IP, 51 CG
1884: 35-23, 2.40 ERA, 272 Ks, 516.2 IP, 57 CG

Corcoran pitched three career no-hitters, a number that would not be topped until Sandy Koufax came along.

He also is credited with coming up with the first method of signaling pitches to the catcher, as he set up a system based on the movement of his wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth.

No. 2: Fergie Jenkins—1966-1973, 1982-1983

Cubs Career Totals: 167-132, 3.20 ERA, 2,038 Ks, 154 CG
Hall of Fame
1967: 20-13, 2.80 ERA, 236 Ks, All-Star
1968: 20-15, 2.63 ERA, 260 Ks
1969: 21-15, 3.21 ERA, 272 Ks
1970: 22-16, 3.39 ERA, 274 Ks
1971: 24-13, 2.77 ERA, 263 Ks, All-Star, Cy Young
1972: 20-12, 3.20 ERA, 184 Ks, All-Star

A great pitcher on some terrible Cubs teams, Jenkins nonetheless gave the Cubs a great chance to win every time he took the hill.

His 1971 Cy Young was especially impressive, as he outdueled NL rivals Tom Seaver and Steve Carlton, among others.

It was good to see his number finally retired earlier this year, as he was one of the best Cubs of all time.

No. 1: Mordecai Brown—1904-1912, 1916

Cubs Career Totals: 188-86, 1.80 ERA, 1,043 Ks, 271 CG
Hall of Fame
1905: 18-12, 2.17 ERA, 89 Ks, 24 CG, 4 SHO
1906: 26-6, 1.04 ERA, 144 Ks, 27 CG, 9 SHO
1907: 20-6, 1.39 ERA, 107 Ks, 20 CG, 6 SHO
1908: 29-9, 1.47 ERA, 123 Ks, 27 CG, 9 SHO
1909: 27-9, 1.31 ERA, 172 Ks, 32 CG, 8 SHO
1910: 25-14, 1.86 ERA, 143 Ks, 27 CG, 6 SHO
1911: 21-11, 2.80 ERA, 129 Ks, 13 SV

"Three Finger," as he was known, thanks to a farming accident that cost him most of his pointer finger and part of his pinky on his throwing hand, was by far the most dominant pitcher in Cubs history.

A finalist for Major League Baseball's All-Century team, Brown was the ace of the Cubs' 1907 and 1908 World Series teams.

He went 3-0 with a pair of shutouts combined in his World Series career and also logged 39 saves in his career, leading the NL in that category four straight years.