When Theo Epstein became The Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations in October 2011, he knew that he had a chore ahead of him. Prior to joining The Cubs, Epstein was the general manager of The Boston Red Sox as he oversaw two World Series Championships which brought optimism to Cub fans. In Epstein’s first year at the helm of The Cubs, the team lost more than 100 games for the first time since 1966. Epstein has his hands full as The Cubs roster resembles that of an out-of-date discount store.
The Cubs finished 2012 near the bottom of every major hitting category including 15th in runs batted in with only 570. The Cubs pitching staff wasn’t that much better as they were 14th in team earned run average at 4.51
Epstein has to and must revamp The Cub organization from the minor league system, but how long will it be before the natives at Wrigley will begin to get restless? With The Houston Astros no longer in The NL Central as they have jumped to The American League, The Cubs no longer have a buffer that can prevent them from finishing last within the division. Epstein has one Major League Baseball Draft under his belt, but prospects such as 2012 first-round pick Albert Almora won’t be ready for the big club anytime soon.
Today’s 3-1 victory over The Pittsburgh Pirates was promising as it is always better to start the season with a victory; albeit there are still 161 games remaining. It was promising that starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija threw eight scoreless innings today while striking out 9 Pirate batters. Samardzija isn’t an ace, but he will have to play the role of one this year as The Cubs are very thin in the rotation as far as quality arms. Last year Epstein and Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer locked up 23-year old shortstop Starlin Castro to a seven-year, $60 million extension which will keep him in a Cub uniform at least until 2020. Castro got his 2013 campaign off on the right foot today as he went 2-for-4 with a stolen base and a run scored.
The Cubs are not expected to contend with The St. Louis Cardinals or The Cincinnati Reds for The NL Central Title this year, but if they show some fight against The Pirates and Milwaukee Brewers it will go along way for Cubs manager Dale Sveum and his team. Cub fans are frustrated, but they are also loyal. Being that The Cubs have not made a World Series since 1945 and won a title since 1908, what is another year or two for the people on The North Side of Chicago as far waiting for their beloved team to contend?
What Epstein and Hoyer must do is bring in guys that embody the spirit of Chicago in the same mode as he did with The Red Sox. Players such as Kevin Millar and David Ortiz will never have to buy another drink at a tavern in Boston. Aside from winning in Boston, Millar and Ortiz also fit that mold of Boston. Aside from being dubbed as “The Windy City”, Chicago is also “The City of Broad Shoulders”. The 1985 Chicago Bears embodied the town because they were tough, blue collar guys. Baseball wise the city loves and respects Cub greats such as Baseball Hall of Famers Ernie Banks and Ryne Sandberg who both left it all on the baseball diamond, but ultimately fell short of that elusive World Series Title.
The path for Epstein is not an easy one, but nobody thought that Epstein could actually help The Red Sox win a World Series either.
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