Each MLB team’s best season ever

Chicago Cubs: 2016

From one allegedly cursed team to the next, let’s turn our attention on the Chicago Cubs, who had gone 108 years between World Series titles before finally ending the Curse of the Billy Goat in 2016. The title came a year after the Cubs were swept 4-0 in the NLCS.

The 2016 Cubs won 103 games, the highest total for the franchise since 1910. The Cubs were led by a dominant starting rotation that featured a top three of Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks and Jake Arrieta who combined to go 53-21. Overall, the Cubs led the National League with a 3.15 staff ERA.

Chicago’s offense was led by Kris Bryant, the NL MVP, and Anthony Rizzo, who finished fourth in the MVP vote and won the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger at first base. Bryant hit 39 home runs and drove in 102, while Rizzo hit 32 out and drove in 109.

The Cubs faced no real adversity in the regular season, running out to a 35-15 record by the end of May. They entered the playoffs as the clear favorite to win the World Series and advanced there easily. Things finally got interesting for the Cubs in the Fall Classic against the Cleveland Indians as they found themselves down 3-1 with a struggling offense.

Facing a huge deficit, the Cubs were able to battle back and push the Indians to Game 7, which turned into an all-time classic. Running on fumes, closer Aroldis Chapman blew an eighth-inning lead, sending Cubs fans into a panic. A rain delay gave the team a chance to regroup, and the Cubs came out and won the game in the tenth inning to end the longest drought in MLB history.