I’m fine… hopefully most of us Cub fans are. Yes, another season equals another season without a World Series championship; this is a fact… can’t argue that. Starting 2016 will begin year 108 of the longest drought in professional sports. This is also true, but I think most would agree, that this Cubs team is just getting started.
Maybe you still believe in curses… maybe you think because we’re the Cubs we will never win… maybe you hate the Cubs and root against them every turn… maybe you love to see their fans suffer. If you are in one of those groups, then you won’t believe in this positivity that I will be spewing. If you are not, please continue reading.
We Are Good. That was the mantra for this year’s team, and yes, I think it’s safe to say they proved that. 97 regular season wins, a wild card playoff game victory, and an NLDS series win over the Cardinals validates this. The Cubs are here, and this time to stay. The thing about it… they will get better.
Getting better doesn’t always equal results, but it sure puts this team in the best possible position to succeed. It’s Theo’s time to shine… it’s his time to earn his money; I think he has thus far. It’s his team that will be working on making the team on the field better. I think they will.
Back to the NLCS for a minute… the Mets were hot; a lot hotter than I thought. I think it’s safe to say pretty much every aspect of their game outshined the Cubs in this quick 4 game sweep. Pitching, defense, offense… yes, the Cubs were good this year, but they simply were not good enough in this series. Every phase of the game let us down, it was a total team effort on this loss. And although I hate to say it, and still have a hard time believing it, the Mets were better. The results showed that. Wait until next year, again.
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They’ll probably be favored in many publications for 2016 World Series winners. That’s a lot different than this year. This year, there were no expectations. I predicted a slightly better than 500 finish, and that was more than most people thought. Nobody expected this group of young players to gel and be good this quickly. It happened, ahead of schedule, and now come the expectations. 97 wins again next year? Maybe. Maybe more. That is what will be expected now. How will we perform under lofty expectations is the question? I know the expectations quadrupled after beating the Cardinals, and then the Mets happened. Choke? Not exactly.
I don’t consider this year a choke, I really don’t. 1984, yes. 1989, not really. 1998, nah. 2003, oh yeah. 2007, don’t think so. 2008, big time. Just because you lose doesn’t mean you choked. There have been plenty of chokes by the Cubs over the years, but not this year. With the expectations, the raised talent on the field, the fact that this team will continue to get better, yeah, now we’re setup for another choke. 2016, 2017, 2018… may be all playoff years for the Cubs, then again they may not. Nothing is guaranteed. NOTHING! But if we do become those repeat playoff attendees like the Theo plan says, and we continue to come up empty like we did this year, then yes, that choke label may be more appropriate. Not now, not this year. But going forward, from this moment on, making sure the pressure doesn’t exceed the pleasure will be one of the biggest challenges.
This year was fabulous. It will be remembered as the year the Cubs came back; came back to playing baseball at a major league level. The year the young boys arrived. The year of innocence and fun. The year of unexpected success. I hate to see it end. Yes, the end of the season is here, but we’ve only just begun. The Cubs are here to stay.
So now what? Who stays, who goes, who will arrive? Now the shaping of the 2016 Cubs begins, and I will definitely have my opinion in the upcoming weeks. Not today. Today is the day I wash all my Cubs gear. Today is the day I wear my Cubs hat for the last time this year. Today is the day, like last night after the game on the field, that we salute this 2015 team. I wear the hat to say congrats, we’re not going anywhere, we’ll be back. Now it’s time to turn the page on baseball… I really don’t care who wins, although I will definitely be rooting for the AL. It’s time to catch our breath, and dive into the other 3 sports that are going on. It’s time to hang up the Cubs gear again until next year, when we do this all again. It’s been fun. Thank you Cubs. Thank you for making me believe again. Get some rest, and come back hungry. Come back ready to win it all and reward all your faithful fans. We all deserve it. So, Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year… see you in a few months.
bullwinkle
nice article…..pretty well sums up all of the multiple feelings going on out there
they were a good team, they are a good team, and with a little tweaking hear & there, they will remain a good team for a few years to come…….
choke…not as a team, but a few glaring fingers ‘could’ be pointed…..when your 3,4,5 hitters can’t muster anything over a .180 for the whole playoffs, that’s a place to start…..
see these guys again next year without the jitters and watch what happens…..
Mo
First off I want to say thank you for a great season from the CUBS. We beat the Pirates and Turd Birds. Beating the Turds at home is something I will never forget as long as I live. We found a new Ace, a third baseman, two power hitting OF stars for the future.
Now with that out of that way…Hammel pitching game 4, defensive errors, and dead bats do not make it thru the playoffs. Both Arietta and the 100 million dollar man were both ready to pitch, yet we decided to go with a sub-par playoff pitcher and the bullpen we did not trust in the one game playoff? Puzzling… WTF Joe? Keep the players in good spirits…what felt good about last night Joe? I personally do better when I am under a little pressure and a scared. Makes you react sooner, think better, and play with a sense of urgency! As soon as they made it to the playoffs, they stopped being kids, so stop treating them like it. Hold them accountable, IE Baez defense, chew his ass out, in Spanish if you have to. Save the beer for the off season Joe and get to work on teaching the basics again and again, every time.
CUBS ownership, your time is now, strike the steel while its hot, open up the dam check book. One pitcher is not enough. Get some 3,4,5 pitchers, because we all know that ticket prices will go up next year!
2016
1 Trade Castro and Strop (hat freakin kills me)
2 Rebuild bullpen, with RP not former SPs (bulk on $ should go here)
3 Central division is only getting better, so sign a Big SP and Bat, if you think your good, get better
4 Teach basic fielding
5 Treat them like men, be honest, if they suck, tell them, if they do well, it’s expected, no special baby bull
Bottom line:
We, the CUBS fan base are getting older, ill-tempered, and cheaper….meaning we need to win soon or we will stop going to games, buying the gear, and turn into Philly fans when someone messes up.
2016 is win or die!
signed an ill-tempered, frustrated, long time CUBS fan!
Just venting, I guess!
LD#19
Flip over your W flags people! “M” for Mets! Your team was dominated in the series by the Mets; simple as that. Things did go the Mets way, but they made it happen. What’s up with all the Met Fans at Wrigley in Game 4? Did cub fans give up and sell? Sure looked like it.
Your hated Cardinals will be back in full force next year and so will Pittsburgh, Nationals, Dodgers, and Giants. Cubs 2015 season was a really good one and unexpected, but repeating seasons like that and staying injury free in baseball is by far the most difficult of all the major sports. Its a lot to count on. Arrieta was untouchable the entire 2nd half of the season and in his most important moment he got blown up by the Mets (He should still win the Cy Young). Can he get past it? or is he the next Price, Grienke, or Kershaw in the post season? Two DH’s in the outfield cost you a lot of runs at key times? Schwarber may never have a position in the NL (Great DH). Fowler covered the ground for the other two, but is he coming back? or who’s his replacement? Do you need a whole new outfield? The infield is loaded and too many could cause issues for playing time and dissension in the dugout?
“Just getting started”, can end just as abruptly. 1985 Bears, 2005 White Sox are perfect examples and a whole lot of other teams. Sox had one good season after the World Championship in 2005. The 2006 team sure looked better on paper, but wasn’t even close to the magic of 2005.
The cubs opportunity needed to be seized now. This is one that got away for sure. Little too excited about beating the rival Cardinal’s. The thing about rivalry’s is the rest of the world doesn’t care. Its all all about winning championships and that’s what is remembered in history. You beat the cards and finished 2nd in the NL. So what. Pressure? Youth? Choke? Call it whatever you like, they looked really bad in that last series. Good run this season for the cubs, but not nearly what it takes to win it all.
JEFFK
Welcome back! You can breathe easy again, at least for another year. Cubs nearly did have enough to pull it out this year, but came up short. What a great ride though.
Don’t really recall the 2005 Sox, but doubt they were built up with as much young talent as this Cubs team. That, along with the money to spend and guys willing to do so, puts the Cubs in the postseason conversation for years to come. There is no guarantee, this is true, but feel pretty good about our chances going forward. Kind of like the 2009 Blackhawks who were clobbered in the conference finals weren’t good enough, what followed that year, and is still going on, is something every franchise should strive for. That’s the Chicago team I most compare this Cubs team too, I can only hope what follows resembles the same results. I’ll take on any bets against the Cubs for the foreseeable future. Let me know.
LD#19
Of course you don’t recall the 2005 Sox, cause you weren’t man enough to watch them dominate the year and the postseason. No, the 2005 Sox weren’t built up with as much young talent as the the cubs, not even close, but they WON it ALL. Compare the cubs to whatever you want. I’m sure you won’t watch the rest of the post either now that the teddy bears have been eliminated and I’m sure you don’t watch hardly at all when there not in the postseason. To bad, you might know what’s required to win if you did. Cubs were close but still very far and very fragile from what I saw. I got to see most of the games in between fishing and softball and it looked bad at the end. Youth and talent is there for sure, unfortunately more is required to win when you get there. Lots of talented players across MLBG don’t have what it takes to win and likely never will. Good luck.
I watch the baseball postseason every year in its entirety. Regardless of whether the Sox or cubs are in it. Its always great, and by far the best and most dramatic of any sport. The overrated NFL steals ratings with its violence loving trailer trash fans dressed up in the seats like 10 year old’s at Halloween. Now with fantasy football exploding into full time national gambling, all people will care about is their private team and not the actual rooting interest of their local team. Today’s youth seem to follow favorite players rather than teams. 10-20 years from now there might not be any football at all, cause today’s parents aren’t letting there sons play football due to the latest medical findings. Baseball will then be King again! I can’t wait. Go Royals!
JEFFK
I know the Sox had a magical year in 2005… everything went their way… you need a lot of that to win it all. After almost blowing it in the regular season, they stormed through the postseason and topped it off with a World Series title; 1x every 100 years is better than I can say for the Cubs.
My point was, that the Sox year WAS magical… then POOF, it was gone. No mas. Not now, not soon. The Cubs are built for sustained success, not just one magical year, although that’s what most of us Cubs fans are longing for. The thought process being get enough chances in the postseason with the same team and have it all come together for one year. As far as the Cubs looking bad at the end, yes, you’re right, but I’m sure that’s the most you’ve watched the Cubs over 162. 97 wins is no fluke, and they WILL be back and better and have another chance to win it all next year. Ahhh.. next year… we continue to wait for that to be true… one year it will actually be, and I’m betting soon. Very proud of the year the Cubs had this year…
I don’t typically watch a lot of non-Chicago sports teams, regardless of what sport. The 2nd half of last night’s football game was the most I’ve watched of a non-Bears game since the Super Bowl. I root for and follow MY teams, so will I watch the World Series? Maybe some of it. I won’t be glued to my couch watching it… but I do agree with you on the hopeful World Series champ. Not because I’m an AL fan all the way, and not totally because the team they oppose beat my team, but because they’ve earned it. A 2nd straight trip to the World Series deserves a title; I couldn’t imagine getting there first off, and then not winning it 2 times in a row?!?! Go Royals.