Chicago Cubs: Where do the Cubs go from here after playoff exit?

After an early playoff exit, what’s next for the Chicago Cubs?

The Chicago Cubs had plenty of opportunities to get the job done on Friday afternoon. But they were never able to capitalize. After a game one loss at home the Miami Marlins, the Cubs seemed poised to win game two, extending the series to a third game.

The story for the Cubs has been the same every year since 2016: Get to the playoffs, hope to win, only to find no signs of life, and eventually get eliminated at the hands of an opponent the team probably should have handled.

If anything, even the shortened regular season seemed to be like a roller coaster ride, with so many ups and downs, if one really wanted to, they could argue that the Cubs barely did enough to get into the postseason.

What happens next is yet to be determined. But here’s what we do know: First, expect David Ross to be back as the manager next year. In a shortened season, Ross kept his team focused and weathered an unprecedented storm in COVID-19.

However, beyond that, the arrow continues to point sideways. For the Cubs right now, there’s a lot of uncertainty that continues to exist. If any changes are on the way, it’s likely to the same core that carried the Cubs to the World Series back in 2016. Even that World Series championship seems like it was forever ago when in reality, it was just four short years ago.

Maybe it’s time to breakup the tandem of Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant. The duo, which was once one of the signature duos in Chicago sports, hasn’t been the same since 2016. Of the two, it’s more likely that Bryant is traded this offseason. Moving him could net the Cubs a significant return that could help the Northsiders in both the present but also build for the future.

Maybe Kyle Schwarber is on the move this offseason too. To where? Nobody knows. However, the Cubs are better off making one major move that improves the outlook of the team rather than just a few smaller moves that are likely to fail. Patching a few holes around the current core hasn’t worked out over the last few years, so a big move that shakes things up significantly may be the only way to go.

The silver lining in an early playoff loss is that the Cubs do have some extra time to explore their options about what they’d like to do this winter. Will it be hard to see some fan favorites like Schwarber potentially traded? Yes. However, doing what’s best for the team in the long-run is what should be the priority over anything else.

Take solace in knowing that changes are likely coming to the North Side this winter but whatever happens, has the potential to change the outlook of the Cubs moving forward. Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer have some work to do this offseason if the Cubs are going to continue to be relevant. It’s better to attack the issues that plagued the Cubs in 2020 and in years past, rather than waiting before it’s too late.