Rickey Eugene Reuschel (pronounced RUSH-el) (born May 16, 1949 in Quincy, Illinois) is a former professional baseball pitcher from the early 1970s into the early 1990s. His nickname was "Big Daddy" because of his portly physique. He was known for his deceptive style of pitching, which kept hitters off balance by constantly varying the speeds of his pitches.

Reuschel was listed as 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds, which made him a few pounds heavier than his franchise-mate from two generations earlier, Hippo Vaughn. Reuschel could run surprisingly well for his size (logging 4 triples in his batting career) and he was frequently used as a pinch runner on days he was not pitching. He was also a fair - though awkward-looking - hitter, batting well over .200 several times. His older brother Paul Reuschel also pitched for the Cubs for a few years while Reuschel was pitching, but was not nearly as effective as his younger brother and his career was much shorter. Both of them were Illinois farm boys, with strong physiques and plain-spoken ways. The two are the only siblings to combine on a shutout. On August 21, 1975, Rick started and went 6¹⁄₃ innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers, followed by Paul, who pitched the final 2²⁄₃ innings for the Cubs' 7-0 win.

Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson (born November 30, 1962) is a former American baseball and football player. He was the first athlete to be named an All-Star in two major American sports, and also won the Heisman Trophy in 1985.

In football, he played running back for the Los Angeles Raiders of the National Football League. In baseball, he played left field and designated hitter for the Kansas City Royals, the Chicago White Sox, and the California Angels of the American League in Major League Baseball. While at Auburn University, he won the 1985 Heisman Trophy, the prize annually awarded to the most outstanding collegiate football player in the United States. He also ran a 40-yard dash in a blistering 4.12 seconds (hand-timed), which is still the fastest verifiable 40-yard dash time ever recorded at any NFL Combine. A hip injury severely impaired his professional baseball career, and ended his NFL career.

In 1989 and 1990, Jackson's name became known beyond just sports fans through the "Bo Knows" advertising campaign, a series of advertisements by Nike, that starred Jackson alongside Rock and Roll Hall of Fame musician Bo Diddley, promoting a cross-training athletic shoe named for Jackson.

Michael Jack Schmidt (born September 27, 1949) is a Hall of Fame third baseman, widely considered as the greatest at the position in the history of Major League Baseball. He played his entire career for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Schmidt had an unusual batting stance, turning his back somewhat to the pitcher and shaking his derrière while waiting for the pitch. By standing far back in the batter's box, he made it impossible to jam him by pitching inside. Schmidt was one of the best athletes of his time; teammate Pete Rose once said, "To have his body, I'd trade him mine and my wife's, and I'd throw in some cash."

Upon graduation from Fairview High School in Dayton, Ohio in 1967, Schmidt attended Ohio University in Athens, where he joined Beta Theta Pi Fraternity. Schmidt led the Ohio Bobcats baseball team to the College World Series in 1970, and was drafted by the Phillies in the second round of the 1971 Major League Baseball Draft with the 30th overall pick.

On June 11, 1971, he was signed by scout Tony Lucadello, who had followed him since Little League Baseball. Six days later, Schmidt made his professional debut in an exhibition game between the Phillies and the Reading Phillies in Reading. Schmidt played the whole game at shortstop for the Phillies and hit a game-winning home run against Reading. Along with shortstop and third base, Schmidt also played some second base in the minors.

Frank John Viola, Jr. (born April 19, 1960) is an American former starting pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Minnesota Twins (1982–1989), New York Mets (1989–91), Boston Red Sox (1992–1994), Cincinnati Reds (1995) and Toronto Blue Jays (1996). A three-time All-Star, he was named World Series MVP with the Twins in 1987 and won the AL Cy Young Award in 1988. Long-time Tigers manager Sparky Anderson said of Viola, "...He's an artist; I love watching him work..." His overall career stats are impressive, with a 3.73 ERA, 176-150 record, 74 complete games, and 16 shutouts in 421 games.

He batted and threw left-handed, and was nicknamed "Sweet Music" – a nickname he picked up after a Minnesota sports writer declared that when Viola pitched, there was "Sweet Music' in the Dome. The nickname was a play on the fact that his last name is also a name of a musical instrument. A fan began displaying a banner bearing the phrase in the outfield's upper deck whenever Viola pitched. Twins fans considered the banner to be a good luck charm. The banner is now property of the Minnesota Historical Society. It was again displayed when Viola was inducted into the Twins Hall of Fame. Frank was honored as a member of the Twins' "All Dome" team in 2009.

Willie Dean McGee (born November 2, 1958) is a retired professional baseball player who won two batting titles and was named Major League Baseball's 1985 National League MVP. McGee primarily played center and right field, winning three Gold Glove Awards for defensive excellence. McGee spent the majority of his 18-year career playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, helping the Cardinals win the 1982 World Series with his outstanding performance in Game 3 of that series. A four-time All-Star, McGee accumulated 2,254 hits during his career.

Willie Dean McGee, one of seven children, grew up in a devoutly religious household. His father Hurdice was both a machinist at the Oakland Naval Yards and a deacon in the Pentecostal church. Hurdice did not want his son to play any organized sports on Sundays, so McGee slipped out of the house on Sunday afternoons to pursue his passion for sports. Much later, McGee learned that his father knew that he was sneaking out to play baseball, but decided to let him go on anyway.