Young Chicago Cubs Too Naive, Stupid To Feel Pressure

This season is turning out to be magical so far for the young Chicago Cubs. The youngsters are playing like they are too naive or too stupid to feel the pressure they should be under.

Chicago Cubs /

Chicago Cubs

There is some magic happening around the Chicago Cubs in 2015. They are at least a year ahead of schedule of team president Theo Epstein’s plan on building a winning team.

After Tuesday night’s 8-5 victory, the Cubs are 7-and-1/2 games ahead of the San Francisco Giants for the final playoff spot in the National League. They are also just two games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates for the top Wild Card spot.

And winning the division is now not out of the realm of thinking. They are just 6-and-1/2 games behind the Cardinals, so, with over a month left in the season, there is still a shot the Cubs could make Anthony Rizzo a prophet.

These young Cubs are loose despite playing for the team’s first playoff berth since 2008. They are supposed to feel some pressure with the defending World Series champs breathing down their necks. Instead, they are having fun, and, in turn, the attitude is helping them rack up victories.

The Cubs are in the midst of winning 21 of their last 25 games. In that period, they beat the Giants FIVE straight times. After being down 2-and-1/2 games BEHIND the Giants about a month ago, they now have that healthy lead over them. They made up TEN games over the Giants in that period.

After being relatively ignored by many of the media, the Cubs are starting to grab some attention. Sports Illustrated caught a moment on Monday. Kris Bryant was jogging down the third base line after hitting a walk-off home run, and reliever Pedro Stop was jogging right there with him. It showed the pure joy these Cubs are playing with right now.

Also, the Cubs have the Sunday spotlight on ESPN when they play the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday Night Baseball.

Manager Joe Maddon loves that the Cubs are playing meaningful games at this time of the season and getting some attention. He also welcomes the word “pressure” being placed on these youngsters.

“I love the fact that we are,” Maddon said of being on SNB and the Sports Illustrated cover. “I love the fact the games are meaningful. I love the fact that people will use the word ‘pressure’ and ‘scrutiny.’ I think it’s great for our guys.”

It is great having a manager like Maddon, who is the leading contender for National League Manager of the Year, keeping the clubhouse light and loose.

Even more so, having a player like Jon Lester, who played in five postseatons and won two World Series titles, really helps these youngsters.

Earlier this month, Lester talked about how these kids should play.

“This is going to sound really bad, but I’ve always been a big believer in playing stupid,” Lester said. “Being naive. I’ve seen it with the Rays in 2008. They were naïve to the situation. They had nothing to lose. We have nothing to lose. We’re not supposed to win. We’re supposedly in the rebuilding stages. If we make the playoffs, it’s just an added bonus.

As the season progressed, no one really expected much from the Cubs. As we enter the month of September, however, it is getting to the point that if the Cubs DON’T make it to the playoffs, it will be a disappointing season, even with the low expectations early on. They have a 96.9 percent probability of making the postseason.

These young Cubs don’t need to look at numbers, though. They are too naive and too stupid to understand where they are at. They just go out there and play and have fun.

Hopefully, the fans can have some fun watching their Cubbies in the playoffs.

Next: Joe Maddon Proving To Be What Young Chicago Cubs Need

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