The Cubs got two key players by trade this year.
In 1924, the Cubs contended and stayed near first place through the end of July, but a 13-18 August dropped them out of the race. It was the third straight year they’d done this sort of thing, and so they apparently decided to shake things up with a major trade.
This was the only significant transaction for the Cubs in 1924.
October 27: Acquired Wilbur Cooper, Charlie Grimm and Rabbit Maranville from the Pirates for Vic Aldridge, George Grantham and Al Niehaus
Aldridge had been a solid member of the Cubs rotation for three seasons before this deal (and in addition, briefly in 1917 and 1919), averaging 3.0 bWAR per year.
Grantham, the Cubs second baseman in 1923 and 1924, had two good seasons and stole 43 bases in ‘23, while posting a 4.3 bWAR season in ‘24.
Niehaus had yet to play in the majors at the time of this trade.
Nevertheless, a shakeup appeared needed after three years of treading water, so this deal was made.
Cooper and Maranville were the centerpieces of this deal. Cooper had been a stalwart of the Pirates pitching staff for over a decade, and even though he was 32 at the time of the deal, he’d had a pretty good year in ‘24. Maranville’s career went back to 1912 with the Braves, and he’d finished seventh in NL MVP voting in ‘24.
As it turned out, neither of those players did much for the Cubs. Cooper had a mediocre year in ‘25 and by mid-1926 was dumped on waivers to the Tigers. Maranville eventually was named manager of the Cubs, a stint that lasted less than half a season, and he, too, left on waivers at the end of the year to Brooklyn.
What made this an important trade for the Cubs was Grimm, who had been a good first baseman for the Pirates for several seasons, though he was just 25 at the time of the trade. He immediately improved that position, batting .306/.354/.439 in 1925 and getting downballot MVP votes. Eventually, he played in two World Series for the Cubs and managed the team for 14 years in three different stints, winning three pennants. Though the Cubs didn’t win the two WS Grimm played in, it wasn’t his fault — he batted .364/.417/.515 (12-for-33) in those series.
Grimm’s 946 wins as Cubs manager is second in franchise history and first among post-1900 managers. He also managed the Braves for five seasons but was let go there before he could take them to the two pennants led by manager Fred Haney. His 1,287 wins as a manager rank 37th all-time.
Grimm’s last stint as Cubs manager, 17 games in 1960, ended in a weird way, with him sent to the radio booth to replace Lou Boudreau, who managed the Cubs the rest of 1960 (and the team didn’t do any better under the Good Kid, finishing 60-94). Grimm returned to the Cubs coaching staff during the College of Coaches era and then served various roles in the front office until the team was sold by the Wrigleys in 1981. Grimm is one of the most significant figures in Cubs history.
This is an “A” trade for the Cubs.