Chicago Cubs: “C” or not, Anthony Rizzo embodies Cubs captaincy

Official or otherwise

The reigning Roberto Clemente Award winner embodies what any human would hope to achieve, regardless of their craft. With his Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, constant hospital visits, his personal strife with cancer, he showcases the kind of teammate any team would want.

Statistically, Rizzo is already up the leaderboards of all-time Cubs first baseman. His 24.0 fWAR is good for sixth all-time. Rizzo’s 165 franchise home runs rank third, just above long-time Cub, Mark Grace (148) and just below Derrek Lee (179).

Some would like to see the Cubs officially put the “C” on Rizzo’s chest, only to make official what many know to be true. That Anthony Rizzo is the captain of the Chicago Cubs. There’s probably a lot more that can be said to which truly pinpoints the scope of Rizzo’s presence for the Cubs, and most of that was on display in the wake of a reprehensible tragedy recently.

Whether or not that day comes, that the Cubs do officially designate him a captain, he would be the first since Sammy Sosa.

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It’s undeniable that the Cubs’ chemistry couldn’t be better. And maybe official captaincy is not something the club values as far as appointing it to any one player. Regardless, there are many Cubs leaders, and Rizzo is among them, leading with grace from the top.