Chicago Cubs: Three takeaways from the David Ross press conference

Chicago Cubs: It isn’t 2016 anymore.

Throughout the press conference, Ross emphasized the fact that he’s all about moving forward. He seems to understand that it’s no longer about 2016, in more ways than one.

For one thing, Ross is no longer the cuddly “Grandpa Rossy” character that many have made him out to be. In fact, that’s never who he was, as Ross admitted that the persona has been overblown.

The former catcher gained such a great reputation, not because he was fun-loving and friendly, but because he knows a lot about the game and knows how to hold players accountable. Indeed, accountability came up several times during the conference.

Yet it’s also not 2016 because, as Theo Epstein pointed out, a lot has changed in the game since then. Largely because of that, the Cubs’ 2016 championship is a distant thing of the past. Ross said that he wants to win multiple championships. He’s not going to do that by reminiscing about the “good old days” but rather by moving forward with the group of players he has in 2020 and beyond.