Charlie Grimm-Babe Dahlgren-Phil Cavaretta

Phil Cavarretta, who went from Lane Tech to playing for the Cubs at age 18 and holds the franchise record for longevity with 20 seasons, died Saturday in Lilburn, Ga. He was 94.

The first baseman and outfielder, who was the National League's Most Valuable Player and led the Cubs to their last World Series appearance in 1945, played his final 77 games for the White Sox.

Cavarretta holds the Cubs' record for single-season batting average by a left-handed hitter at .355 in his MVP season. He ranks in the top 10 in most offensive categories for the Cubs.

During the 1951 season, he replaced Frankie Frisch as manager while still playing. That lasted until the spring of 1954, when Cavarretta told owner P. K. Wrigley he didn't believe the team could win. He was fired and quit the organization, moving on to the Sox.

But Cavarretta remained in the game as a coach, manager and scout into the 1970s.

He was believed to have been the last living person to have played against Babe Ruth, in 1935.

Born in Chicago on July19, 1916, Cavarretta showed flashes of his greatness at Lane Tech as a pitcher and hitter, throwing a no-hitter and leading his American Legion team to a national championship in 1933.

He signed with the Cubs before graduating from high school, then was sent to Peoria before being called up to the Cubs to play first base. On Sept. 25, 1934, Cavarretta made his Wrigley Field debut, homering in a 1-0 victory over the Reds.

His longtime manager, Charlie Grimm, gave him his nickname.

"When I first saw Cavarretta in the mid-'30s, I started calling him 'Philibuck,'" Grimm was quoted as saying. "It just came to me and was inspired, if you can call it that, by my reaction that here was a hard-nosed athlete. Phil liked it."

His grandson, Jeffrey Brown of Lubbock, Texas, told the Associated Press that Cavarretta died in a hospice care center. Brown said Cavarretta suffered a stroke several days earlier.

Brown said Cavarretta is survived by his wife, Loraine, four daughters and one son, among others.

1945 World Series Official Program
Chicago Cubs Version

Philip J Cavarretta