The Cubs, as a championship caliber team, report to spring training this week without a lot left to decide. In total, the World Series Champions return essentially all of their contributing starters, with the exceptions of Dexter Fowler and Jason Hammel. What’s more, they return Kyle Schwarber as a full time player after missing all but the first handful of regular season games and the World Series.
It would be difficult to make a proclamation the night before Valentine’s Day that the team who starts spring training tomorrow is better than the one that won the franchise’s first World Series in 108 years, but on paper, there’s a strong case to be made for that.