You all know about what Cubs GM Dallas Green called a “dog-and-pony show,” the curious little dance that resulted in Andre Dawson signing with the Cubs. It was clear, when Dawson left the Montreal Expos as a free agent after 1986, that the Cubs would be a good fit for him. And Dawson wanted to play on a grass field after a decade of having his knees chewed up by the artificial turf in Montreal. (In the 1980s, half of the 12 National League fields were turf.)
Dawson finally gave Green a blank contract at spring training and told him he’d sign for whatever Green put on the blank.