Statue of Chicago Cubs Legend Will be Unveiled Sunday at Wrigley Field

Ryne Sandberg will join the small list of Chicago Cubs greats on statue row before Sunday’s game.

Oct 18, 2017; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Cubs former second baseman Ryne Sandberg throws out the ceremonial first pitch before game four of the 2017 NLCS playoff baseball series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Wrigley Field. / Jim Young-USA TODAY Sports

Sunday has been 18 months in the making for Hall of Fame shortstop Ryne Sandberg.

Already a Chicago Cubs legend, he will become the fifth Cubs player to have a statue unveiled at Wrigley Field. The 3 p.m. central time ceremony will include Sandberg and be attended by close to 100 of his friends and family, along with teammates from the 1984 and 1989 teams, both of which won the National League East.

There was a time when it wasn’t clear if Sandberg might be able to attend the ceremony.

Diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer in December, he’s undergone treatment for most of the year. Last month he announced on Instagram that after the treatments, along with PET scans and MRI tests, that there was “no detection of cancer.”

The original diagnosis, he said, was incurable. He continues to undergo radiation treatments in an effort to keep the cancer to prevent a resurgence.

The 64-year-old legend spoke to the Chicago Tribune before Sunday’s ceremony and said that being transparent about his diagnosis was important to him, especially after he admits he was “secretive” at times during his playing days.

“At my age now and where I’m at today, that was the natural thing to do was to let people know rather than have people speculate or hear through the grapevine,” he said. “I wanted them to hear from me and that would be something that I’d get off my back and not hold in.

“It was the best thing that I did because everybody has just been so supportive with it and people have been able to reach out and know about it and be a part of the journey if they wanted to.”

Sandberg will join Cubs players Ernie Banks, Fergie Jenkins, Ron Santo and Billy Williams with statues at Wrigley. Legendary play-by-play announcer Harry Caray also has a statue, which is located outside the stadium by the center field bleachers.

The date of the unveiling is calibrated to commemorate one of the biggest nights of Sandberg’s career. It’s the 40th anniversary of the so-called “Sandberg Game.” In a game against the rival St. Louis Cardinals, he hit game-tying home runs in the ninth and 10th innings and drove in seven runs in a 12-11, 11-inning win.

The second baseman started his career with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1981, but a trade sent him to Chicago in 1982.

He was a lifetime .285 hitter with 282 home runs and 1,061 RBI. He was voted the 1984 National League MVP when he hit .314 with 36 doubles, an MLB-leading 19 triples, 19 home runs and 84 RBI.

He also hit a career-high 40 home runs in 1990.

He was a 10-time All-Star, a seven-time Silver Slugger, a nine-time Gold Glove winner, the Major League Player of the Year and a Home Run Derby champion.