Chicago Cubs: ‘Everybody In’ is more than a catch phrase

Two years after winning it all, the Chicago Cubs organization chose the phrase “Everybody In” to epitomize their 2018 season. It’s working.

Everybody In.  Two simple words, but what does the Chicago Cubs’ 2018 motto really “mean”? Does it resonate with the casual fan? Does it truly speak to “Cubs Nation,” on the whole?

Taken at face value, “Everybody In” is a pretty straightforward sentiment. We, as a fan base, are staked in the success of the team in a way that makes us part of the solution. The team, for their part, is on the same page, marching the same direction and to the same beat of the proverbial drum. Ownership and management are committed to ensuring their involvement aligns with the overall spirit and goals of the team. Everybody in. Makes sense.

Digging a bit deeper, this motto – which appears everywhere from the team website itself to marketing emails, newspaper ads, radio commercials, and even gets uttered by team broadcasters from time to time – has to be more than just words that are sensible. There has to be meaning, purpose.

Chicago Cubs: Words matter

“Let’s Go” was the catchphrase for 2016, and that worked. It was time, after a century of frustration, for a team and a fan base that was poised for glory to put in the work and deliver the goods. It was time to come together and do what had to be done, and “Let’s Go” brought that spirit to life.

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In 2017, the team went with “That’s Cub”. Again, very appropriate. Coming off the team’s first World Series win in 108 long years, it was time to revel in being part of that glory. It was time to celebrate and appreciate being “Cub”. While that particular motto didn’t really generate that never quit, eye-of-the-tiger mentality, it didn’t really need to. Cubs Nation was simply in a different place in 2017, and there’s nothing wrong with that. “That’s Cub” was a great state of mind to be in.

Enter 2018. The World Series Championship is a great skin on the wall, but it is old news. The team, after three consecutive trips to the NLCS, has proven that they have what it takes on the field to be a perennial contender. But, after a somewhat lazily played first half of 2017 and a not-so-close series loss to the Dodgers in October, it is also clear that sustained position on the top of the baseball heap requires more than talent and promise. It requires commitment, consistency and, most importantly, a group effort.

It requires that everybody be “in”.

Chicago Cubs: Talking the talk, walking the walk

The on-field Cubs product in 2018 has been pretty darned good, despite many fans and league insiders struggling a bit with what can only be defined as inconsistency.

Yes, the team has hovered at around .500 since the break, which is not ideal. But keep it in perspective. The Cubs lead the NL in winning percentage, batting average, runs per game and run differential. All this without their best player, Kris Bryant, for a substantial stretch of games. Regardless of anxiety levels and overanxious fans who don’t want to sweat out another September, the needle is pointing up.

All this is to say simply that the Cubs have embraced their mantra. Everybody most definitely is “in”. The team has bought into the concept. They’ve received contributions and key plays from every man on their roster and the recent roster additions all seem to walk the talk as well.

As for the fans, this catchphrase couldn’t be more on point.

Chicago Cubs: A motto that speaks to the fan

For as long as I can remember, I’ve always known a bunch of “other” Cubs fans. Each is as passionate as the next, and all where their fandom on their sleeves. Even when the team was painful to watch, we all grinned and dealt with the pain as we watched nonetheless. We were always “in”, every one of us.

While this sentiment may not seem too noteworthy on a Cubs blog, understand this: I’ve never lived anywhere close to Chicago. I grew up in Maine. I make my home in Houston, Texas. Yet I’ve always known more than a handful of loyal Cubs fans. It doesn’t stop there, though.

I was recently blessed with the opportunity to drive with my family from California to Texas on our annual family vacation (not dissimilar from the movie of the same title, I should add, but I digress). On this trip, I of course proudly donned my selection of Cubs hats and T-shirts, for all the world to see.

The response I got was surprising.