2021 was a very miserable year for the Chicago Cubs

2021 started with mixed expectations for the Chicago Cubs. They won the division in 2020 but made some big changes in the offseason leading up to it. There was also a lot of drama surrounding the status of Anthony Rizzo, Kris Bryant, and Javier Baez as their contracts were coming to an end.

Well, they started off fairly well but fell off by the trade deadline. At that point, it was clear that they weren’t going to the postseason. When they realized that none of their stars were signing extensions, they traded them all away. It was tough because three very good players who helped win a championship were all sent packing.

The team started to lose even more without those guys and they ended the season with a record of 71-91 which was good enough for 4th place in the NL Central. The only good thing about that record is the fact that they will have a top-ten draft pick as a result.

With all of this in mind, it is hard to call 2021 anything other than miserable for the Chicago Cubs. There were some fun moments throughout the year but not many of them will be remembered because of everything else that happened.

The Chicago Cubs dealt with a lot of misery during the 2021 season.

The 2016 World Series championship core was officially broken up. The only ones that remain are Jason Heyward, Willson Contreras, and Kyle Hendricks. A lot of great memories are attached to those three players so to see them in different uniforms was devastating.

The fact that all of this happened is honestly crazy. The World Series was only five years ago so it so to see them fall off so quickly is unbelievable. Based on how things have gone lately, it may or may not be a long road back to contention.

Since the trade deadline, the Cubs have sent mixed signals on their direction. They ended the year by signing some stop-gap-level players and then Marcus Stroman. The former suggests that they are rebuilding and the latter suggests that they are trying to win. That is very frustrating because they feel like a team with no true direction right now.

As miserable as it was for the Cubs in 2021, it wasn’t all bad. Wrigley Field was able to welcome back fans for the first time since the pandemic started which was amazing to see. They also saw older rookies like Patrick Wisdom and Frank Schwindel which was very fun.

It was tough to lose those core players but they did get some pretty good prospects as well so it could have been worse. It was mostly a miserable year in 2021 but 2022 is a chance to get this thing turned around.