Makeup
In order for a team to look like a playoff-caliber team they have to have the right makeup. They have to have the veteran leadership to keep guys in the right headspace when the going gets tough, but you also have to have the youth movement to keep guys having a good time when they throw up 36 runs in two games on a division rival in the middle of a pennant race.
This team features guys that have been on World Series winners like Bellinger, Swanson, Gomes, and Hendricks. It features guys like Suzuki and Stroman that have played in important international games representing their countries. But it also features guys like Morel, Tauchman, and Alzolay that are so excited to be on the major league squad that they aren’t even considering how big the moment may be.
We won’t know about the luck component for a couple more months, but let’s hope we got all of our bad luck out earlier this season against the Marlins and Nationals in May.
Regardless of how the luck goes, the 2023 Chicago Cubs team is what a World Series contender looks like. Now let’s go make some history.