Yes, you read that right. The team that has been the laughing stock of baseball since the curse of the Billy Goat began in the 1945 World Series is red hot, and this is not a glitch, they are indeed here to stay.
This is a new era, and all I know is that Theo Epstein should be in consideration for the greatest General Manager in Major League Baseball history. He ended the curse of the Bambino in Boston by winning two World Series’ and making the Red Sox legitimate again, and I have a strong feeling that this curse will be broken within the next few years.
The Chicago Cubs are winning, and they are doing it the right way in my opinion, by building through their top prospects in their farm system. They are 21-15, second in the National League Central, behind only the team with the best record in baseball, the St. Louis Cardinals. They’ve won because their young, homegrown studs have come up to the big leagues and showed everyone that they are for real.
It starts with their infield which is just downright frightening. Everybody knew about shortstop Starlin Castro, who came up to the big leagues in 2010 as a 20 year old kid, and showed off his skills right off the bat. Outside of his glitches in the field, there is no ceiling for this 25 year old. Then there’s 25 year old first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who they acquired from the San Diego Padres after the 2011 season. He had all the potential in the world, slowly transforming from a strike out or home run type of hitter into one of the most feared hitters in all of baseball. This kid has hit his stride, hitting a staggering .349/.469/612 thus far in the 2015 season, with 8 home runs, and has driven in 22 runs. If that hasn’t scared you yet, just check out 23 year old third baseman Kris Bryant, who after tearing it up in spring training, was called up on April 16th this season, and picked up right where he left off. The 6 foot 5, 215 pound youngster is hitting .297/.433/.495 with 4 home runs and a team leading 25 runs batted in. Then there’s 21 year old middle infielder Addison Russell as well, who took over as the youngest player in the major leagues. He’s loaded with potential, is known as a five tool player, and has spent a good amount of time at second base this season. When a guy like catcher Miguel Montero, who is hitting .312/.427/.506 with 4 home runs and 15 runs batted in is the least talked about infielder on the team, that’s saying something.
The Cubs’ outfield is nothing to sneeze at either. There’s 23 year old right fielder Jorge Soler, who was with the big club last year as a 22 year old and showed signs of being a beast, and is now hitting .281/.354/.410 with 3 home runs and 14 runs batted in, as well as veteran center fielder Dexter Fowler, who has a great mix of speed and pop at the top of this potent lineup.
The starting pitching isn’t great, but they’re solid. It all starts off with big time free agent signing 31 year old veteran right hander Jon Lester who has been a winner and one of the most consistent pitchers in all of baseball with the Boston Red Sox, was traded to the Oakland Athletics for Yoenis Cespedes, and is now 4-2 with a 3.70 earned run average in his first season in the National League after getting off to a rough start. Then there is 29 year old starting pitcher Jake Arrieta, after getting off to a rough start in his major league career, has found a home in Chicago. Last season, he came into his own pitching to an ERA of 2.53 and struck out 167 hitters in 153 and two third innings. He’s gotten off to a similar start this season at 4-3 with a 3.00 ERA and has struck out 48 in 45 innings, walking just 11 hitters. Veteran Jason Hammel has found similar success since coming to Chicago, pitching to an ERA of 3.11 and posting a record of 3-1 thus far this season. These starters have done a great job challenging opposing hitters, which is why they’ve been as successful as they have been.
Even though their bullpen has struggled to get going, closer Hector Rondon and setup man Pedro Strop, have proven to be pretty reliable options. Then there’s veteran Jason Motte, who after taking a couple years off due to injury, has a track record winning a World Series as the closer of the St. Louis Cardinals, so there is potential in that aspect of this team. It definitely needs to improve if they want to go far in the playoffs this year, but they are definitely the most intriguing team to watch this season.
The Chicago Cubs aren’t just built for this season, but for many years to come. They are loaded with potential and should be viewed as one of the most dangerous teams in the Major Leagues. Theo Epstein is out to break the curses, and if he can break this one, and the Cubs can win a World Series during his tenure, he should be in consideration for the greatest General Manager in the history of sports. In my opinion, after watching this team for the next decade or so, more teams are going to want to model after what they have done. That is building through the farm system instead of trying to “buy championships”, and that will be the best thing for major league baseball.
