The Bernstein Brief: Stop Saying This Cubs' Run Is 'Unbelievable'
By Dan Bernstein--
CBSChicago.com senior columnist
(CBS) I don't often start my day by quoting fictional Spanish swordsmen, but each time I hear someone gushing over the Cubs' appearance in the World Series by calling it all "unbelievable," I hear the words of Inigo Montoya:
"You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."
Tom Ricketts bought the team and pledged to do all he could to get the Cubs right where they are. He hired Theo Epstein to be in charge of doing it, and Epstein laid out his plans for a sustained-success baseball model built from scratch. Then he hired Joe Maddon, who also told us exactly what he was prepared to do as manager.
Tom Ricketts reflect: 'This was on schedule'
We watched it all get here, every little last bit of it, all the draft picks and trades and signings and development. We saw progress accelerate just last season, with the operation in the NLCS a year ahead of schedule after winning 97 games in 2015. Then all they did was be the best team on the planet for the last six months, winning 103 games by being great at everything with a deep and versatile roster that could pitch, hit, field and run the bases better than any other.
The Cubs are exactly where they're supposed to be, and we have seen up close just how and why they got here. We also know it's reasonable to expect that they will be here more often in the years to come.
The Cubs in the World Series isn't unbelievable. It's quite the opposite.