Chicago Cubs: Is 2020 a farewell tour type of season?
The Chicago Cubs might be having a farewell tour in 2020 unless they can retool.
2020 is surely going to be a strange season for all teams in Major League Baseball. The Chicago Cubs are an interesting team to evaluate for a lot of reasons. They are a good team on paper but they are very top-heavy. They have a lot of stars at the top of the lineup but the depth might be tested if anyone tests positive for COVID-19 or has a baseball-related injury. It could be a struggle for them or they could be really good, we will just have to wait and see.
There are a lot of people that wonder if 2020 or even 2021 is going to be their farewell tour. What that would mean is the final go with the main core that won the World Series in 2016. That mainly includes Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, and Kris Bryant. There are other guys still on the Cubs who were there in 2016 but they weren’t the stars of the team like those three were.
There are also some key contributors to that team that is already gone like Dexter Fowler, David Ross, and Jake Arrieta. Manager Joe Maddon is also gone in favor of the previously mentioned David Ross. It was a questionable coaching hire but he could prove to be really good. It is crazy how fast a team can grow apart after winning a title.
After 2021, most people speculate that Theo Epstein will no longer be with the Cubs. His contract will be up and he always talks about how he likes taking on new challenges. Well, he ended near-century long droughts with both the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs so you have to wonder what is next for him in his career. Chances are that whatever it is, it won’t be with the Cubs.
Hot. The DH doesn't help the Cubs as much anymore. light
There are also some contractual issues that the Cubs are going to be faced with over the next year or two. Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, Kris Bryant, Willson Contreras, and Kyle Schwarber all fit under that umbrella. There is a chance that one or more of them aren’t back within the next few years. That has to make people wonder if this year is the farewell tour. There have been some good times with this core but it seems like the end is near.