Listen here: Episode 2: CUBS Mania! on Spotify

The 2016 Chicago Cubs lived up to the hype and broke a century-old curse. But to win the World Series, Cubs star Anthony Rizzo and new manager David Ross say some baseball magic was involved. Also, Ian Happ, WGN -TV producer Larry Hawley, and Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright explain the nation’s love-hate relationship with the Cubs. 

World Champs f.k.a. Loveable Losers

It wasn’t until 2015 that things really got rolling for the Cubs. They made it to the NLCS that year. One year and 103 wins later, the Cubs were the best team in baseball and ended 2016 with their first World Series title in 108 years.

David Ross

Fan favorite and clubhouse elder statesman David Ross was named Chicago Cubs manager in the winter of 2019.

In the hotly contested Game 7 of the ’16 Series, Ross’s last at bat was a home run.  Ross summed up the big game and final moments of the 2016 MLB season this way:

I remember at the end of Game 7 my teammates were yelling my name and some of them picked me up and carried me off the field. And I think that says more about the quality of the group of guys than anything that I did.       ~David Ross, on the 2016 Cubs, speaking in June of 2018

Anthony Rizzo and Ian Happ on good managers

Cubs veteran 1B Anthony Rizzo was part of that 2016 team, and caught the final out of Game 7. He and his younger teammate Ian Happ talk, in this episode about the importance of Cubs culture and the managers. Happ sang the praises of Joe Maddon and the Maddon era, while Rizzo spoke this spring about why Grandpa Rossy will make such a great manager for a team full of players that were once teammates.

Not everyone loves the Cubs

Yes the Cubs have fans everywhere. Eddie Vedder, Vince Vaughn, John Cusack are among them. But St. Louis Cardinals longtime pitcher Adam Wainwright also weighed in on playing against their bitter rivals, and why “whooping the Cubs” is so important to Cards fans.

Listen here: Episode 2: CUBS Mania! on Spotify