Chicago Cubs: Three reasons for optimism about this season

Reason 3: This team is still really talented if healthy

I completely understand why Cubs fans are frustrated about the team not making moves this offseason. However, one look at this Cubs roster and it’s easy to see that this team still has a lot of talent.

It may be seen as a cop out after all of my previous negativity, but I do think it’s okay to be excited about this team’s talent (on paper) heading into 2019.

If stars like Bryant and Willson Contreras can return to the type of stats they were putting up prior to 2018, it may not even matter that the Cubs didn’t acquire a big hitter this offseason.

If Javier Baez can build on his career year last year, who knows how far this team can go? If pitchers like Darvish and Kyle Hendricks stay fully healthy, it could do wonders for this team.

I know this is a lot of “ifs” about this team, and there’s also a possibility that the team again struggles with scoring runs, injuries add up, and Maddon loses his job at the end of the season. But there’s still a reason to have hope for the upcoming year.

It seems as if a lot of the team’s stars are playing with something to prove. It’s easy to be negative when we as fans are frustrated. But with the season just a couple days away from starting, why not be optimistic for at least a little while?