The 1951 Cubs weren’t very good; they finished last in the eight-team National League with 92 losses, which at the time was second-most in franchise history.
They made things worse by panicking and trading popular and productive outfielder Andy Pafko for a bag of magic beans (not really, but the magic beans would probably have been a better return than the players the Cubs received), and Pafko went on to play in three World Series for the Dodgers and Braves.
80 games into the season, GM Wid Matthews fired manager Frankie Frisch and replaced him with longtime Cubs first baseman Phil Cavarretta, who became the team’s first player-manager since Gabby Hartnett in 1940.