Chicago Cubs: Joe Maddon is the only man to manage this team

Chicago Cubs looking to play energized baseball this year

After a year where a ‘World Series hangover’ ran into mid-summer, Maddon is focusing on energy and enthusiasm with his club in 2018.

"“The two most important items all summer will be energy and enthusiasm,” Maddon told MLB.com. “We’ve been [to the postseason] three years in a row, right? We’re pretty good, we have good guys coming back, we acquired some good guys [for 2018]. If you show up with energy and enthusiasm every day — they’ll do their work, they’ll study, do the video — what else could I possibly ask them to do? If you show up with the right mental attitude every day, that’s when all that stuff really kicks in. If I’m going to make an emphasis on anything, it’ll be that.”"

Chicago is certainly capable. In all my years watching baseball, one team stands out in the energy/enthusiasm regard: the 2016 Cubs. Those guys loved playing the game – and winning – every single day. Last year, the love was there, but the energy lacked in big ways, at times.

Clubhouse connections

And, to be frank, I trust Maddon to re-light that fire. He’s shown an outstanding ability to get the most out of his players – even from his pre-Cubs days. With Tampa, he fielded a low-payroll team, yet annually, they were contenders in the AL East.

Despite their recent run of success, Chicago is still an incredibly youthful team. Guys like Anthony Rizzo and Jon Lester are the clear leaders in the clubhouse and they’ll lead in their own respective ways. But, as always, it comes down to Maddon setting the tone – and making sure his guys are ready to go.