A lot has happened since 1908. The radio and the TV were invented; the NBA, NFL, and NHL were all formed; the United States fought in World War I and II, Korea, Vietnam, Persian Gulf, Iraq, and Afghanistan Wars. Man has walked on the moon. Five states were admitted to the Union. Prohibition was created and then repealed; and the Titanic was built, set sail and sunk. All of these events have occurred since the Chicago Cubs have last won a World Series. And even though the Cubs sadly crushed the fans’ hopes of an end to their century-long drought on Oct. 21 when they fell they fell to a sweep by the Mets in the NLCS, the hopes for a World Series victory–unlike the Titanic– have not yet sunk. Actually, the hopes of a championship are sailing along quite nicely. With the team Joe Maddon has built and the skill they’ve shown during the regular season and early post-season, it looks like the dynasty is only beginning and the likelihood of a championship trophy is getting closer and closer.  

  The team once known as the “loveable losers” seems to have turned the page on 100+ years of losing You could dare to call them the “loveable winners”. The Cubs were winning close games that in the years past, they would lose due to lack of talent and effort. There was a lot of excitement behind this team and its future, and a lot has to do with the rise of young talent like Kris Bryant, Addison Russell, Kyle Schwarber and some key offseason  free agent signs like Dexter Fowler and Jon Lester. And, in particular, the rise of an ace–and should soon be Cy Young winner–pitcher in Jake Arrieta. Even the signing of a veteran manager in Joe Maddon has helped bring a new life to this franchise that the world has not seen since 1908.

  Cubs fans have been saying and have been told by management for years, “Next Year is Our Year” or “It’s a process.” Well, it seems like the waiting is over, the “future” for the Cubs is now present and is in full effect. Cubs fans can thank General Manager Theo Epstein for the success of the Cubs. Epstein was the General Manager of the Boston Red Sox in 2004 when he was able to be the man that broke the “Curse of the Bambino”. Which was the curse that stopped the Red Sox from winning a World Series for 86 years. He would go on to win another World Series with the Red Sox in 2008 before he joined the Cubs in October of 2011. Epstein knows what it takes to win, and he brings a winning mentality to a normally losing franchise. It took a couple years for Epstein to bring in the players he knew would help him win whether it be through the draft or offseason signings. Theo Epstein also brought in another winner in Joe Maddon, the new Cubs Manager, Maddon was the former manager of the Tampa Bay Rays and led the Rays to a World Series appearance in 2008 and multiple playoff appearances following 2008 before joining the Cubs this past Spring. Maddon knows how to make a good environment for the players in the clubhouse and he is known for getting the most out of each one of his players. The combination of Epstein and Maddon will be a very good combination for years to come. The Chicago Cubs would not be where they are today if it was not for Theo Epstein and Owner Tom Ricketts.

  I know the Owner Tom Ricketts has had a rough stretch with the Cus fan base, trying to renovate the stadium but the rooftop owners throwing a fit and not allowing some of the renovations to occur. Then Ricketts threatens and tries to move the team out of Chicago which did not go well with the Cubs fans at all. But as much as Cubs fan might not like him, they must understand he is the man who signs the checks of all their beloved Cubbies. He was willing to put a lot of money into signing key players and add much needed renovations to one of the oldest MLB Stadiums. Cubs fans have a lot to be thankful for.

  The Cubs also have to thank MLB for adding in the second “Wild Card” position two years ago. If it was not for this, the Cubs would not have even made the playoffs in a one-game “winner take all” showdown in Pittsburgh. This was the Cubs first appearance back to the postseason since 2008. Regardless of how far the Cubs made it in the postseason this year, the fans and the city should be proud and happy with just making it this far. At the beginning of the season, many people and baseball analysts saw the Cubs and a year or two from very competitive for a World Series Championship. No one really thought the Cubs would make the playoffs or even be one of the hottest teams going into the postseason. After all, the prospects were still in the minors at the beginning of the year so people thought they would keep them down there for one more year and ease them into the Majors. And they sent Kris Bryant back down to the Minors to save money and keep him for an extra year on his contract before the regular season started. Throughout the season, the Cubs brought up each prospect just to get the some action in the Majors, but when these young guns started to perform so well on the field, the Cubs just kept them instead of sending them down.

  The Cubs have done everything correct so far as personnel and trades so far this season. The Cubs were easily the most exciting team to watch in all of baseball, and this is coming from a White Sox fan. This Cubs team reminds me a lot of two teams:  last year’s Kansas City Royals, team which lost in the World Series to the San Francisco Giants in seven games. And they also remind me of the, dare I say it, the 2005 Chicago White Sox who won the World Series that year by sweeping the Houston Astros in 4 games. Why these two teams, you might ask? Well, one since I am a Sox fan ,I have to bring up 2005 in anything I talk about when it comes to the Cubs: it’s like a necessity. And all three of these teams were not supposed to make the playoffs that particular year. I relate them more to the 2014 Kansas City Royals though as a whole because the Royals were also quite a young and inexperienced team who just went along for the ride and just kept riding their momentum to the World Series. Also, the fan bases are both very similar about their excitement in the comeback of their beloved franchises. The end result of the Cubs’ season wasn’t quite like the latter, but it can still be viewed as a huge success.

  The players played great baseball and brought excitement around the team, city, and sport. They have played the game it is supposed to be played and they have won a lot of games playing that way. I think the off-season will just be extra excitement for what is in store for the future for the Cubs, the city of Chicago and the game of baseball. A lot sure has happened since 1908, and it’s been a long time coming; but with this team, management, and ownership, it seems to look like the wait will soon come to an end. And a World Series trophy will be raised on the North Side, and we can all party like it is 1908.