Chicago Cubs need Anthony Rizzo to lead and help create new identity

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(Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

For years, Anthony Rizzo had been the unofficial captain of the Chicago Cubs. But he could face increased scrutiny in 2020 as the team looks to rebound.

With Pedro Strop a free agent, Anthony Rizzo stands alone as the last carryover from the dark days – when the focus was on draft picks, not the standings at the big league level. Entering a new era, the Chicago Cubs will need Rizzo more than ever moving forward.

I’m not alone when I say that Rizzo should be this team’s captain – and maybe under first-year manager David Ross, that could come to fruition. But regardless of whether or not the Cubs put the ‘C’ on his jersey in 2020, the slugging first baseman will have to take an even larger role in the clubhouse if Chicago wants to get back to their winning ways.

This weekend, Rizzo earned his third Gold Glove for his defensive work at first base – hardly a surprise to anyone who watches him on a regular basis. With the bat, he was, once again, as consistent as ever, turning in a .924 OPS – his best single-season mark since 2016, when he finished fourth in National League MVP voting.

“He’s known for his hitting, and people recognize his defense,” former Cubs skipper Joe Maddon told MLB.com late in the season. “He fields his position so well. He throws really well as a first baseman also. He’s a fearless thrower. So we can do things on defense with him that we can’t do with somebody else out there. There’s different little nuanced things that we do that are a little more difficult when he’s not playing first.”

Chicago Cubs: Through it all, Rizzo stands tall

On any given day during the season, set foot in Wrigley Field – you’ll see more Rizzo jerseys on the backs of fans than perhaps any other player. He’s become a legend in his own right at the Friendly Confines and rightfully so – he came into his own with the franchise and helped bring a World Series title to a fan base that had longed for one for over a century.

But there’s work to be done.

If you ask Tom Ricketts or Theo Epstein, change is afoot this offseason. Maddon is out and Ross is in as manager. The coaching staff seems likely to undergo some major changes, as is the front office. Brian Butterfield and Tim Buss are joining Maddon in Southern California – and the turnover won’t stop there.

Most of the team’s bullpen will test free agency, including Strop, Steve Cishek and Brandon Kintzler. Cole Hamels also seems likely to move on in one way or another after a year-plus on the North Side. Chicago may move on from former first-rounders Addison Russell and Albert Almora, not to mention they could potential trade a cornerstone like Kris Bryant or Willson Contreras.

The one man I just can’t imagine the team trading? Rizzo.

Chicago Cubs: Mind over matter for the Chicago standout

After spraining his ankle in a brutal injury while fielding a bunt late in the year, the three-time All-Star did the impossible. He returned three days later – from what was initially labeled a season-ending injury. Not only did he return, he hit .400/.429/.600 over his final six games before the team officially shut him down for the year.

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“You get the questions of waiting a couple more days, but we don’t have a couple more days,” Rizzo said upon his return. “We gotta win now. And I love this team…I love playing. That’s what I want to do. It’s what I love doing — playing baseball, especially for this team that we’re fighting at Wrigley Field in late September to go to the playoffs and that’s where all the magic happens.”

It’s that mentality – the ‘take nothing for granted’ attitude the Chicago Cubs have lacked since winning it all three years ago. Gone is the hunger to prove themselves.

Winning, at times, seemed like something that was taken for granted. It’s hard to combat that, especially after making four consecutive postseason runs, including a trio of NLCS appearances. But after a lackluster 84-win season that saw the team fall flat in September, that string of winning is now a thing of the past.

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Rizzo is the guy to lead such an effort. Ross will look to change the clubhouse culture in his first year at the helm and he’ll need his former teammate to be his right-hand man and hold people accountable through thick and thin.

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