Week In Review: Cubs Get Off To Hot Start in Arizona

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The outset of spring training and its symbolism in bringing a merciful end to winter is inherently supposed to be much more about who the squad could be rather than who they are. And, at least in the very early going, who they are is who you want them to be: a team poised to make the playoffs. 

Image courtesy of © Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

In his media interactions leading up to the official start of spring game action this week, Craig Counsell, in his second year as skipper of Chicago's North Side club, was direct in his messaging for where this season's Cubs baseball team ought to be in just under eight months from now. Speaking with Marquee's Jon Sciambi and Jim Deshaies, Counsell stressed that "the playoffs are the expectation." Everyone currently donning a Cub uniform seems to be in lockstep with this vision.

Things didn't start great against the defending world-champion Dodgers this past Thursday, especially with our first look at Cody Poteet, but the Cubs jumped all over David Roberts' team. Young prospects like Kevin Alcantara and Moises Ballesteros recorded key hits. They logged their first meaningful action against big league pitching from one of the premier squads in the game, no less. While it's unlikely at best to think that these young, though promising, prospects will be up in Lakeview anytime soon, they showed convincing evidence of what returns they will eventually yield. 

One of the Cubbies' most useful strengths from the offseason is its new-found pitching depth. At the time of this writing, the Cubs have yet to lose a game, and that's been in no small part due to a pitching staff that, in many ways, looks eager to get the real action started. Coming from an injury-plagued 2024 campaign, Jordan Wicks and Justin Steele will factor as cornerstone pieces of this pitching staff in 2025. They looked sharp at worst and entered spring camp with an obvious vigor and fire to get their club to an elevated point of contention come the dog days of summer. 

More than just rifling balls past opposing teams' bats, the Cubbies look poised to do more than a bit of mashing of their own. In three completed games, the Cubs have recorded a combined 37 hits. Conceding that a good handful of the pitchers they're doing it against won't even be on a major league roster by the end of the year or even a contributor in the minors, that's still pretty impressive.

At this origin point of the season, the cautious optimism that most prognosticators reached a consensus on this offseason appears well warranted. Thus far, I've witnessed a squad acutely aware of its recent failures and disappointments in the eyes of fans and those from within. They're exuding the energy of a collective chip on their shoulder, but one of confidence and focus. There is still so much to figure out, including just what on earth will outfield depth pieces like Travis Jankowski and Greg Allen even do for this club. But this week, your excitement was rewarded if you were excited about Cubs baseball and what they might be.

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