4. Joe Maddon
There’s no doubt Joe Maddon is one of the best managers in the game. He certainly may not have had his shining moment in Game 5, but his team won. His wealth of experience is going to be a huge advantage against the Dodgers. Dave Roberts is a good manager in his own right. It’s not easy to win over 100 games in a single season but Maddon has managed over 2,000 games including the postseason. Roberts has yet to hit 400.
One of the biggest reasons the Cubs are always calm and collected is because Maddon knows the right buttons to hit at the right time. He guided the Cubs to breaking one of the longest championship droughts in sports, not to mention all the weird juju that went along with it. I can’t think of any other team that has had to deal with a goat as part of some curse. Chicago embraced all of the noise that came with winning the title last year and the pressures that are still coming with their defense.
Maddon is unflappable when the pressure is at its highest point. His team knows it and plays like it. The Cubs know their leader will make good decisions throughout the series and have them in position to win each and every game.