Chicago Cubs All Set To Rise In 2015

Courtesy: USA Today

The Chicago Cubs have not been relevant for the last decade or so. The “Curse of the Billy Goat” has held a stranglehold on this franchise since the curse’s inception. The official start came from the 1945 World Series game versus the Detroit Tigers. Cubs fan Billy Sianis, the owner of the Billy Goat Tavern chain of Chicago, brought his pet goat to the game. He was asked to leave the stadium because his goat’s odor was bothering the other fans.

He was outraged and it is rumored that he proclaimed, “Them Cubs, they ain’t gonna win no more.“ Since his remarks after being asked to leave the game the Chicago Cubs have not won a World Series since 1908 and they have not been to a National League pennant since this incident in 1945. Things seem like they are finally going to end.

Courtesy: CBS Sports

The Chicago Cubs this past offseason signed heralded manager Joe Maddon, who for the past 8 years has lead the Tampa Bay Rays to become one of baseball’s yearly contenders. While with Tampa, he led a floundering franchise to become a relevant low budget powerhouse.

In his tenure he posted a 754-704 record, accounting to a winning percentage of .517. He largely got his success by drafting well and getting the best out of his players with the low budget restrictions for player salaries. With the Chicago Cubs he will get better financial backing from owner Thomas S. Ricketts. While the President of Baseball Operations, Theo Epstein, was the man who orchestrated the winning culture of the recent Boston Red Sox success. They also have the General Manager Jed Hoyer, who helped Epstein in Boston to win their last two World Series titles.

The current Chicago Cubs roster has three All-Stars in shortstop Starlin Castro, first baseman Anthony Rizzo and  starting pitcher Jon Lester. The complimentary players that the Cubs have assembled around these three consist of Jake Arrieta, Jason Hammel, Edwin Jackson, Pedro Strop, Welington Castillo, Miguel Montero, David Ross and Dexter Fowler. All of these players have played on playoff and World Series contenders. Under Epstein’s leadership the Cubs have been stockpiling talent through the draft and acquiring players who have won big games with their former teams.

On MLB.com the Cubs have six prospects that are in baseball’s top 100 prospects list for 2015. Two of which, third baseman Kris Bryant and shortstop Addison Russell, are in the top 5 of that list. Bryant has been on a tear the last year, leading the minors in home runs last season (43) and continuing that into Spring Training. The promising young power bat is the second overall prospect in the MLB will soon be in a Chicago Cubs lineup.

Addison Russell may not have the power numbers that Bryant has, but he a player that projects into the 15-20 yearly average. He is a player better known for his defense and range at the most difficult position in the field. Similarly Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado has proven that over the past couple seasons those type of players are vital to consistent contenders. Chicago Cubs fans can only hope that Russell can make such an impact at a young age, similar to Machado.

Courtesy: Bleacher Report

For the Chicago Cubs have only ten players 30 and older on their 40-man active roster, with most entering their prime (between 24-28 years old). Joe Maddon will surely get the most out of this youthful core. He is the “mastermind” of using the defensive shift and utilizes efficiency to keep his team in close games.

In his tenure in Tampa Bay he shifted his defense the most out of any manager. This allowed him to get players in the right defensive spots to get outs where opposing batters tend to hit. Maddon is one of the “new age” managers who directs his team with baseballs biometrics in mind. Every conceivable statistic is “number crunched” and analyzed to give him the best projections of what an opposing players tendencies are and where they are more likely to go with the ball.

Coupling all of this together shows that the Chicago Cubs are poised to make a run at success and there is no one better than Joe Maddon to get that done. He has shown what he can do with a franchise that is capped with money. Now is his chance to show what he can do with a franchise that is willing to and able to spend money.