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| 1 | HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| 2 | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of | ||||||
| 3 | Representatives wish to recognize Chicago Cubs legend and Major | ||||||
| 4 | League Baseball Hall of Famer Lee Smith on the occasion of Lee | ||||||
| 5 | Smith Day at Wrigley Field; and
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| 6 | WHEREAS, Lee Smith was inducted into the National Baseball | ||||||
| 7 | Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York on July 21, 2019,
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| 8 | becoming the 52nd Chicago Cub to earn baseball's ultimate | ||||||
| 9 | honor; and
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| 10 | WHEREAS, Lee Smith was born on December 4, 1957 in | ||||||
| 11 | Jamestown, Louisiana and was a standout athlete
at Castor High | ||||||
| 12 | School, lettering in baseball, basketball, and track; he was | ||||||
| 13 | drafted and signed by the
Chicago Cubs in 1975 and made his | ||||||
| 14 | Major League debut on September 1, 1980; and | ||||||
| 15 | WHEREAS, Lee Smith played eight seasons with the Chicago | ||||||
| 16 | Cubs (1980-1987) during his 18-year Major
League career; | ||||||
| 17 | originally a middle reliever and then a starting pitcher, he | ||||||
| 18 | was given the closer role in
July of 1982; known for his slow, | ||||||
| 19 | intimidating walk to the pitcher's mound, his steely glare at | ||||||
| 20 | the batter,
and a blazing fastball, he developed into one of | ||||||
| 21 | the most dominating closers in baseball history; and | ||||||
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| 1 | WHEREAS, Lee Smith led the Chicago Cubs in saves a | ||||||
| 2 | franchise-best six consecutive seasons, including
the 1984 | ||||||
| 3 | season, helping secure the National League Eastern Division | ||||||
| 4 | title and the club's first postseason
appearance in 39 years; | ||||||
| 5 | he was named Chicago Player of the Year in 1986 by the Chicago
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| 6 | Chapter of the Baseball Writers' Association of America and | ||||||
| 7 | remains to this day the club's all-time saves
leader with 180, | ||||||
| 8 | with 60% of his saves consisting of more than three outs; | ||||||
| 9 | additionally, he is
second in relief appearances (452) and | ||||||
| 10 | third in games pitched (458) for the Chicago Cubs; and
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| 11 | WHEREAS, Lee Smith ended his career in 1997 as Major League | ||||||
| 12 | Baseball's all-time saves leader with 478
(currently third on | ||||||
| 13 | the all-time saves list) and is 12th in games pitched; he was a | ||||||
| 14 | seven-time all-star
and led his league in saves four times, | ||||||
| 15 | earning at least 30 saves in 10 big league seasons; and
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| 16 | WHEREAS, Lee Smith was honored in 1999 as a member of the | ||||||
| 17 | Chicago Cubs All-Century Team; a fierce
and dominant competitor | ||||||
| 18 | on the field, he is affectionately known as "Big Lee" and | ||||||
| 19 | remains loved by fans, an immensely popular Wrigley Field | ||||||
| 20 | legend and fan-friendly member of the
Chicago Cubs family; | ||||||
| 21 | therefore, be it
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| 22 | RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE | ||||||
| 23 | HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | ||||||
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| 1 | we congratulate Lee Smith on his Hall of Fame career and his | ||||||
| 2 | eight seasons as a Chicago Cub; and be it further | ||||||
| 3 | RESOLVED, That we declare September 1, 2019 as "Lee Smith | ||||||
| 4 | Day" in the State of Illinois; and be it further
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| 5 | RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be | ||||||
| 6 | presented to Lee Smith and the Chicago Cubs as a symbol of our | ||||||
| 7 | respect.
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