A promising outfielder and first baseman with St. Louis, Durham was the bait that, with Ken Reitz, brought Bruce Sutter and a pennant to the Cardinals. Durham finished third in the 1982 NL batting race at .312 and became the Cubs’ first 20-HR 20-steal player since 1911. He played outfield for the Cubs until replacing Bill Buckner at first base in 1984, when his career-high 96 RBI helped Chicago to a division title. Aided by Wrigley Field, but troubled by inside pitches, Durham joined the Cubs’ all-time HR leaders but never fulfilled expectations. He was traded to his hometown Reds early in 1988 and missed most of the season with drug rehabilitation. He came back with the Cardinals in 1989 as a late-inning defensive replacement for Pedro Guerrero, but was again suspended for drug use.
