Cubs' all-time retired numbers

CHICAGO -- When the Cubs retired Ron Santo's No. 10 in 2003, it was before the third baseman was inducted into Cooperstown.

"This is my Hall of Fame," Santo told a boisterous crowd at Wrigley Field that day.

Santo was eventually inducted into Cooperstown, but his number is one of five the Cubs have retired. The team honors those players by flying flags on the left- and right-field foul poles at Wrigley Field.

Here is a list of the Cubs who have had their numbers retired:

Ron Santo, 3B: No. 10
Number retired: Sept. 28, 2003
Santo played 14 of his 15 big league seasons with the Cubs. A nine-time All-Star and five-time National League Gold Glove Award winner, Santo was ranked in the top 10 in batting average in 1964, '66 and '72, and he finished with a .277 career batting average. He's the only third baseman in MLB history to post eight consecutive seasons with more than 90 RBIs ('63-70). Santo, who battled diabetes his entire career, was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2012 by the Veterans Committee.

Ernie Banks, 1B/SS: No. 14
Number retired: Aug. 22, 1982
Known as Mr. Cub, Banks is the team's all-time leader in games played (2,528), at-bats (9,421) and total bases (4,706). The Cubs' first African-American player, he joined the team after playing in the Negro Leagues. Banks was the first NL player to win back-to-back Most Valuable Player Awards, doing so in 1958 and '59. He led the NL in '58 with 47 home runs, 129 RBIs, a .614 slugging percentage and 379 total bases. In '59, he again paced the NL with 143 RBIs. A 14-time All-Star, Banks finished with 512 home runs. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in '77. A statue of him stands outside Wrigley Field, and he's buried less than a mile away.

Ryne Sandberg, 2B: No. 23
Number retired: Aug. 28, 2005
The Phillies dealt Sandberg and Larry Bowa to the Cubs in January 1982 in exchange for Ivan de Jesus. Sandberg played 16 seasons, winning the NL MVP Award in '84 when he batted .314 and led the NL in runs scored and tied for the lead in triples, hitting 19 homers and driving in 84 runs. On June 23 that year, he drove in seven runs in what's known as the "Sandberg Game," hitting a game-tying homer off Bruce Sutter in the ninth and another off the Cardinals' closer in the 10th. The Cubs won the game, 12-11, in the 11th inning on Dave Owen's RBI single. A steady second baseman, Sandberg won nine Gold Glove Awards, the most by a NL player, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005.

Billy Williams, OF: No. 26
Number retired: Aug. 13, 1987
The Whistler, Ala., native signed with the Cubs before the 1956 season and won the NL Rookie of the Year Award in 1961. He was known as "Sweet Swingin'" for his smooth swing, and he still holds Cubs career records for most hits (2,510), home runs (392), RBIs (1,353), extra-base hits (4,262) and slugging percentage (.503) by a left-handed hitter. A six-time All-Star, Williams finished his career with 426 home runs and a .290 batting average. He was elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame in '87. Like Banks, a statue of Williams is outside Wrigley Field.

Ferguson Jenkins, RHP: No. 31
Number retired: May 3, 2009
The Cubs acquired Jenkins from the Phillies in April 1966. In 10 seasons with Chicago ('66-73, '82-83), Jenkins went 167-132 with a 3.20 ERA, totaling 154 complete games. He holds the Cubs career record for most starts (347) and strikeouts (2,038). Jenkins topped 300 innings in four seasons and won at least 20 games six times with the Cubs. He won the NL Cy Young Award in '71, posting a 24-13 record, 2.77 ERA, 30 complete games, 325 innings and 263 strikeouts. A three-time All-Star, Jenkins was inducted into the Hall of Fame in '91.

Greg Maddux, RHP: No. 31
Number retired: May 3, 2009
A second-round pick in the 1984 Draft, Maddux played 10 seasons with the Cubs ('86-92, 2004-06), compiling a 133-112 record and 3.61 ERA. He won the first of his four NL Cy Young Awards with the Cubs in '92 when he went 20-11 with a 2.18 ERA in 35 starts, totaling 268 innings. Nicknamed "The Professor" for his precision pitches, Maddux didn't overpower hitters with velocity but preferred to confuse them with location. He won 355 games, including No. 300 while with the Cubs on Aug. 7, 2004, and finished with 3,371 strikeouts. He won 18 NL Gold Gloves and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014.

Note: On April 15, 1997, the Cubs joined every team in MLB in retiring No. 42 in honor of Jackie Robinson.