Nobody could have blamed the Cubs for simply releasing Rick Reuschel before the 1985 season. After all, the Cubs were coming off a division title with a truly formidable starting rotation, and Rick was getting up there in years (he was 35). He also still hadn’t completely recovered from the arm injury.

But, it turned out that Rick had more than just a little bit left in the tank. That season he won 14 games for the Pirates with a stellar 2.27 ERA, featuring the best control in the National League. That wasn’t his swan song either. He won 13 games in 1987, led the league in complete games, and won a gold glove.

The Pirates made the same mistake the Cubs did; thinking he was finished at age 38. But Big Daddy still had two more great years left; 1988 when he won 19 games, and 1989, when he won 17, and then faced his former team the Cubs in the National League Championship Series.

The Cubs won their only game of the series against Reuschel in Wrigley Field (Game 2), but he got one more chance at them in San Francisco. This time, the former Cubs ace finished them off, giving up only one run in eight strong innings, and sending the San Francisco Giants to the Earthquake World Series.