14 Champion Cubs Passed Through Omaha
It happened. The Chicago Cubs broke the longest championship drought in American professional sports with their nail-biting 8-7 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Wednesday evening. As the Cubs players celebrated on the field, some fans back in Omaha might be wondering where they have seen or heard some of their names before.
14 of the 25 players on the Cubs' World Series roster at some point played in Omaha, whether it was at Werner Park, or even at Rosenblatt Stadium. The time span between appearances spans over a decade, beginning in 2002 with catcher David Ross and pitcher John Lackey, stretching out all the way to a pair of 2016 cameos from pitcher Carl Edwards Jr., catcher Willson Contreras, and outfielder Albert Almora Jr.
| Player | Played In Omaha | Team(s) Played For |
| John Lackey | 2002 | Salt Lake City Stingers |
| David Ross | 2002 | Las Vegas 51s |
| Pedro Strop | 2009-11 | Oklahoma City RedHawks, Round Rock Express |
| Anthony Rizzo | 2011 | Tucson Padres |
| Mike Montgomery | 2011-12 | Omaha Storm Chasers |
| Chris Coghlan | 2012 | New Orleans Zephyrs |
| Javier Baez | 2014 | Iowa Cubs |
| Kris Bryant | 2014 | Iowa Cubs |
| Jorge Soler | 2014 | Iowa Cubs |
| Kyle Schwarber | 2015 | Iowa Cubs |
| Carl Edwards Jr. | 2015-16 | Iowa Cubs |
| Albert Almora Jr. | 2016 | Iowa Cubs |
| Willson Contreras | 2016 | Iowa Cubs |
| Justin Grimm | 2016 | Iowa Cubs |
The list consists of nine position players and five pitchers. Those nine batters have combined to bat .268 (44-164) over 45 total contests, adding eight home runs and 24 RBI. Infielder Javier Baez smashed three of those longballs, which included a two-homer game on August 3, 2014 at Werner Park. Kris Bryant (July 10, 2014), Jorge Soler (August 5, 2014), Kyle Schwarber (July 9, 2015), Albert Almora Jr. (July 30, 2016) and Willson Contreras (May 6, 2016) each crushed one roundtripper at Werner Park.
Catcher David Ross, who homered in the final game of his career in Wednesday's Game 7 contest, played in three games for the Las Vegas 51s at Rosenblatt Stadium between August 5-7, 2002. Chances are he forget or would like to forget those three games, however, as he went hitless in eight at-bats, drawing three walks.
The five hurlers have combined to pitch in 34 contests, making starts in 25 of those outings. 24 of those appearances and starts were courtesy of left-hander Mike Montgomery, the only former Storm Chasers player to be present on the Cubs' 25-man World Series roster. He tallied a 5-8 record and 4.73 ERA (71 ER/135.0 IP), adding 116 strikeouts in those matchups.
Neither of the other four pitchers earned a win in their combined ten appearances in Omaha. Right-hander John Lackey, however, did fire a quality start at Rosenblatt Stadium against the Omaha Royals on June 6, 2002, yielding two earned runs on eight hits while striking out five in six innings of work for the Salt Lake City Stingers.
Two members of the Cleveland Indians' 25-man World Series roster have also pitched at Werner Park during their careers. Righty Bryan Shaw made two appearances versus the Storm Chasers as a member of the Reno Aces between August 2-4, 2012, combining to surrender one earned run in two innings of relief, while right-hander Dan Otero relinquished three earned runs on five hits on August 9, 2011, failing to record an out in his relief outing.
Montgomery Wednesday night also became the 22nd different Omaha alum to play in World Series Game 7 contest, notching the save by retiring the only batter he faced.
A full list of former Omaha players who have also participated in a World Series Game 7 can be found by clicking here.