Epstein has faith in this Chicago Cubs group
ARLINGTON, Texas - Chicago Cubs president Theo Epstein does not want to see time slip away or watch a window of opportunity close on his team's fingers, but Epstein said he's not concerned about any "legacy."
Epstein rebuilt the Cubs in the early part of this decade, and the result has been four straight playoff appearances and a World Series title in 2016.
The Cubs' 2018 season ended in failure despite 95 wins, and "urgency" has been the watchword since the beginning of spring training.
"I don't care one bit about legacy; I care about winning," Epstein said before Thursday's regular-season opener against the Texas Rangers. "Every year you have an opportunity to win, you want to take full advantage of it. We have a special group of players. This is a special era of Cubs baseball. Each year we want to make sure we leave nothing undone in our pursuit to make the most of it and win.
"This group has won. And I believe they'll continue to win. We want no regrets. We want to put our best foot forward. That's how we should all approach our jobs, and I believe that's what this group is all about. It doesn't mean we're not going to have adversity along the way, and I believe this group has responded the right way to the adversity we've faced at the end of last season."
The Cubs made no major personnel changes in the off-season. Instead, they've doubled down on what they already have, and they're asking for more urgency on a daily basis this season.
"Every season's a challenge," Epstein said. "It's tough to win. I just think we're extra eager to get going this year because we feel like we left some things on the table last year a little bit. All of us, we didn't live up to our own standards, and that's not a good feeling in any walk of life.
"In baseball, things go quickly. You don't always have a real long window of opportunity with a certain group to win, to get the most out of this. I know that this is a day that all our players and all of us have been looking forward to for a long time, a chance to go out and define what you're all about. It's exciting."