Unable to win a World Series in 108 seasons, the Chicago Cubs found themselves in an odd place last spring: They were favorites to do just that. And they met those expectations in grand style, leading the majors in victories on their way to glory.
Now the Cubs will try to repeat as champs, something no team has done since the Yankees of 1998 to 2000. After vowing to embrace the target last season, the Cubs understand that they are, again, the hunted.
“The target grows bigger and bigger on this team, and the pressure’s there externally,” starter Jake Arrieta said on the first workout day of spring training. “But I think within this clubhouse, the pressure we put on ourselves and the expectations we set individually are higher than they are externally. Dealing with pressure, I think, is a good thing. It shows you care.”
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To claim the crown last season, the Cubs first clawed through a National League field that included the Los Angeles Dodgers, the San Francisco Giants, the Washington Nationals and the New York Mets. Through more than two decades of baseball’s wild-card era, the National League has never sent the same group of teams to the playoffs two years in a row. Expect that to change now.
All five teams that made it last fall should return, with only the Cubs, of all teams, losing a major October contributor.
Closer Aroldis Chapman returned to the Yankees in free agency, and the beloved backup catcher, David Ross, retired.
Perhaps more significant, center fielder Dexter Fowler — such a part of their soul that he sang Go Cubs Go with actor Bill Murray on Saturday Night Live in November last year — now plays for the St Louis Cardinals.
“We’ll miss Dex a lot, and especially for the shorter term, it certainly hurts us,” said Theo Epstein, the Cubs’ president of baseball operations. “But longer term, we have to stay true to what got us here, which is building around a core of young players we believe in and giving them opportunities.”
“We feel Albert Almora has a real bright future,” he said. “And we want to give him some room to grow in the big leagues, and we’ve protected him a little bit with Jon Jay. The two of those guys complementing each other will help us win.”
Almora, who scored the go-ahead run on a Ben Zobrist double in the 10th inning of Game 7 of the World Series, was the first draft choice of Epstein’s regime, going sixth overall in 2012. Still just 22, Almora hit 277 in 47 games last season.
His minor league production was unremarkable — a 290 average, but not much power and a low on-base percentage — but Almora’s presence underscores two Cubs values: strong defense and adherence to a far-reaching vision.
The guess here is that the Cubs will repeat, since they remain the deepest, most balanced team.
However, to them, the immediate goal of a 2017 title is less important than maximizing their chances to win several.
“It’s really hard to win a World Series, period, and it doesn’t put you in a great position to do it again, either, having pitched for seven months the previous year,” Epstein said. “It’s just a hard thing to do. The key is just putting a great team on the field year after year and giving yourself an opportunity as often as possible.”
The Cardinals, who played host to the Cubs in a season opener last night, saw their record fall by 14 victories last season, finishing 86-76.
They upended their long-ago pedigree, leading the National League in homers and ranking last in steals, and their defense was among the worst in the majors.
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