It was one of those cold, rainy May nights at Wrigley Field when you wonder whether summer will ever arrive.
Cubs manager Joe Maddon, not a fan of cold weather, had about five layers of clothing under his blue Cubs hoodie as he ambled into the interview room to give his daily pregame briefing.
It was going to be another miserable night for baseball, but Maddon insisted the conditions were perfect for his young team.
"I like it actually," Maddon said. "I like this stuff. I think it's real. At the beginning part of this year, we played really well in cold weather. We've endured a lot of rain delays and rain and played well.
"I kind of like how we're going about this whole thing, and I want us to keep doing that. The playoffs can be some severe weather."
Playoffs?
No one was seriously thinking playoffs then. The Cubs were hovering around .500, making baby steps toward their anticipated arrival in 2016. No one expected anything more than a nice effort and reason to believe they could contend down the road.
But summer eventually did arrive, and Maddon's Cubs were ready to soar. They went on a 15-1 run starting July 29 and never looked back. Late Friday, while many of the players were presumably sleeping, the Cubs clinched their first playoff berth since 2008 when the Giants lost to the A's in Oakland.
Barring a late collapse by the Cardinals, the Cubs will play the Pirates in the Oct. 7 wild-card game, likely at PNC Park in Pittsburgh. Whether or not severe weather is in the forecast, the Cubs will be ready.
It's hard to believe this all happened so quickly, especially after five long years of awful baseball, including the last three under President Theo Epstein's rebuilding project. It makes no sense, statistically speaking.
But the Cubs are not only in the playoffs, they're one of the best teams in baseball, and they feel they can beat the only two teams with better records _ the division-rival Pirates and Cardinals.
"The Cardinals have played unbelievable baseball all season long," starting pitcher Jon Lester said. "We've beat 'em; they've beat us. The Pirates have played really well, and we've beat them pretty consistently.
"We can play with these guys. We know we can. It's just a matter of getting hot at the right time."
Lester came to Chicago last winter during his free-agent tour in the middle of winter, and still decided to sign with the Cubs. He gave the organization added legitimacy after it had hired Maddon away from the Rays when an opt-out clause in his contract allowed him to flee Tampa Bay.
Maddon said upon his arrival he didn't know he even had an opt-out clause until he was reading the contract on his iPad while vacationing in his RV, which he nicknamed "Cousin Eddie" after the goofball in the "Vacation" movies. Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer met Maddon at a trailer park in Pensacola, Fla., and convinced him the Cubs were on the rise.
A stocked farm system, a ballpark renovation that would increase the payroll and a city that eats, sleeps and drinks baseball were enticing factors. And $25 million for five years wasn't too shabby either.
Maddon's contract has already paid off. He made the players believe in themselves, and once that was accomplished, the winning came naturally.
"Just watching the team play and seeing the brand of baseball they're playing, how they feel about themselves and to see the confidence they're playing with, it makes you feel good," Epstein said. "Because it represents growth, not only in the organization as a whole the last three, four years, but even within the course of the season ... which is a big credit to Joe and his coaching staff as well.
"This version of the 2015 Cubs is pretty darn good."
Epstein and Hoyer took a lot of risks, flipping players like real estate agents who rehab houses. But the key player in the rebuild was first baseman Anthony Rizzo, a solid prospect from the Red Sox system whom Epstein had dealt to Hoyer when Hoyer became the Padres general manager.
They teamed up to acquire Rizzo for the Cubs before the 2012 season and patiently waited for him to become a star on some very bad teams from 2012 to 2014, even giving him a seven-year, $41 million extension early in his first full season.
"They gave me an opportunity," Rizzo said. "I guess I was fortunate to come up in a situation where we weren't in contention right away because they just kept running me out there.
"I'm grateful they gave me the opportunity to play and obviously saw more in me to extend me. Everything happens for a reason. I loved Boston. I like San Diego. But here in Chicago, it really feels like home."
Rizzo came into his own this year, along with starting pitcher Jake Arrieta, who arrived in a trade from the Orioles in 2013 with no fanfare. Under the guidance of pitching coach Chris Bosio, Arrieta has turned into one of the best pitchers in baseball.
Rookies Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, Addison Russell and Jorge Soler developed together, while journeymen Chris Coghlan and Dexter Fowler became vital cogs.
Everyone did his part. No one hogged the limelight. This was a team in every sense of the word, from the way it played to the way it partied after games.
So the playoff celebration had to wait until Saturday, but that's fine. Waiting is part of a Cubs fan's DNA.
As for the players, they're ready for a celebration anytime, anywhere. These Cubs were born to party.
After Saturday's game _ a 4-0 loss to the Pirates _ they danced in a darkened clubhouse, swigged and sprayed champagne on the field, then huddled for a group photo on the pitching mound and watched rookie Carl Edwards Jr. do some break dancing.
"Frankly, it would've been out of their personality for them not to celebrate in a big way, despite the circumstances," Epstein said. "They deserve it. I'm proud of 'em. Let them do whatever they want within the law."
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