February 23, 2016: Defense Mechanism

So this is the year huh?  Let’s pump the brakes Cubs fans.  I want to believe as much as you, but let’s just take a step back.

How many times has this been the year?  How about 2004, the year after Bartman?  I remember Prior, Wood, Zambrano were supposed to carry us.  Flop.  How about 2008?  Coming off a playoff series loss to the DBacks the year before, we’d be back and hugrier, plus Kosuke would carry us.  Nope.  Now comes 2016, the year the Cubs are favored to win the World Series.  How will this story end?

We know how it’s begun.  The dismantling, rebuilding effort by Theo and crew… the suffering through loss after 100 loss seasons, only to reap some benefits last year as the Cubs shocked the world… going to the NLCS, only to get swept by the Mets.  OK, so next logical step is World Series right?  Hey, I wrote the same thing here, and believe you me, I want to believe, and I do believe, but October is a long way away.

Seemingly, the team has only gotten better with the offseason additions.  Lackey, Heyward, Zobrist added to the already impressive young core managed by Joe Maddon.  Unstoppable right?  Well, let’s take a look at what we may not be able to count on.

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Lots of sophomore years coming up… that year where slumps rear their heads.  That year where the league adjusts to you… how well will they adjust back may be an important answer to the question how this story will end.  This young offense certainly got shut down in the NLCS, but I’m giving a mulligan there.  This year… not so much.  How much more patience do we have?  If this ISN’T the year… are we OK with that… are we OK with waiting til next year again?  Certainly the window for this Cubs team appears to be just now opening.

I can write for days about the Cubbies… and I will, but I’ll leave you with this.  I’m scaling back expectations a bit.  I’m predicting an even 90 wins… just what Vegas predicted.  90-72 is not as good as last year, but should be good enough to get into the 2nd season.  I’ll be ecstatic with that, but… this is supposed to be the year.  We want it all!

So this is my defense mechanism kicking in.  I’m taking a deep breath… I’m not believing ALL the hype… I’m cautiously optimistic, and do think that over these next couple years we could finally do it.  This year?  I surely hope so, but I’m preparing myself for the shocker of the year that it won’t happen.  It’s a long season, and we haven’t even begun yet.  Let’s stay healthy, let’s embrace the target (nice Joe), and have some fun… Only one season of this length, 162 games, will determine how good we really are.  I’m ready to find out, how about you?