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After beating up on the Reds 9-5 to finish off their three-game sweep, Anthony Rizzo and his Cubs teammates traveled to the West Loop to hold the fifth annual “Cook-Off for Cancer.” The cook-off is just one of many events that Rizzo holds throughout the year that has a focus on raising money for cancer research and provide support to children and their families battling the disease.
And boy did they do just that.
The event raised more than $1 million dollars by allowing the attendees to bid on one-of-a-kind items in a silent auction or by tipping their favorite Cubs player who were serving food from 18 different restaurants and pouring drinks throughout the night. Players in attendance included: Miguel Montero, Jake Arrieta, Jon Lester, CJ Edwards, Albert Almora Jr., John Lackey, Kyle Hendricks, Ben Zobrist, Jon Jay, and Kyle Schwarber to name a few.
The team served up some amazing food tonight so @RizzoFoundation can serve up help to patients in need. $1.1 million raised! #CookOff pic.twitter.com/165zoyMWKx
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) May 19, 2017
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The silent auction was the highlight of the night and featured a plethora of items including: gear from the Cubs’ World Series run, championship champagne bottles and more autographed memorabilia than you can imagine. The best item, in my opinion, didn’t even from from anyone affiliated with the Chicago Cubs.
This is one of the coolest pieces I have ever seen. #BabeRuth @ARizzo44 @RizzoFoundation pic.twitter.com/uhlVLGS2X9
— David Kaplan (@thekapman) May 19, 2017
It’s unconfirmed how much the Babe Ruth ball went for but I can guarantee you it was out of my price range ($0-$20). Kyle Schwarber got in on the bidding as well. He is serious about breaking his hitting slump because he put a bid in on a 30-minute hitting session with Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo (which eventually sold for $16,000).
Rizzo finished off the night with a great thank you speech to which he showed his gratitude to all of those in attendance.
“It’s just amazing that with your guys’ support we’re making pledges like that. I couldn’t even imagine that five years ago. So thank you to all you guys.”
Here are a few pictures from the event.
Rizzo now has donated roughly $4.5 million dollars to cancer research in the past two weeks which is absolutely outstanding. Well done, Rizz.
