CHICAGO — Now, it’s an even 100 years for the Chicago Cubs.
The team that posted the best record in the National League is picking up the pieces again after three horrendous performances that resulted in a sweep by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the opening round of the playoffs.
A century and counting since their last World Series championship.
“I don’t have the answers; we didn’t play well,” Mark DeRosa said. “This is the best team I’ve ever played on my entire career, and for three games we didn’t give ourselves a chance. We kicked the ball around the field, we didn’t hit, we put too much pressure on our pitchers to come through. We never made them get on the defensive.”
There was so much promise when this postseason began. Now, there’s so much pain. And a dose of uncertainty.
The Cubs led the NL Central or shared the lead from May 11 on, clinched on Sept. 20 and went 97-64 — the most wins for this franchise since 1945, the last year the Cubs reached the World Series.
Along with potential roster moves, there’s another important issue to address. Tribune Company still is trying to sell the team and Wrigley Field, but no one was talking about next year.
There was not a lot of talk at all after the Dodgers finished with a 3-1 win. The big screen TVs were off. There was no shortage of sullen faces around the clubhouse.
“It’s just disappointment. You work so hard for so long, and it’s over,” first baseman Derrek Lee said. “We feel like we are a much better team than we showed.”
