The Cubs Way: The Zen of Building the Best Team in Baseball and Breaking the Curse, Tom Verducci, Three Rivers Press, 384 pages, ISBN: 978-0804190039
When the Chicago Cubs won the 2016 World Series, the franchise ended an infamous 108-year championship drought. As a result, an organization once synonymous with perpetual futility provided a blueprint for how to foster a winning culture. The Cubs’ transformation from lovable losers to baseball powerhouse is explored in Tom Verducci’s book The Cubs Way, which reveals how a change in leadership philosophy and strategic approach helped the Cubs exorcise their postseason demons.
The Cubs Way is a fascinating read that sheds light on the inner workings of front offices and the role of the manager in the modern baseball landscape. The text combines fastidious research with direct quotes from prominent Cubs figures like President of Baseball Operations Theo Epstein and then-manager Joe Maddon. Verducci describes how Epstein crafted a championship roster while also examining Maddon’s influence on the team’s enviable core of young talent.
Throughout the book, Verducci argues that the Cubs became champions by targeting players with unfailing moral character in addition to elite baseball skills.
Inside the Clubhouse with Maddon
In the book’s most compelling chapters, Verducci takes us inside the Cubs clubhouse with Maddon before the start of each World Series game. The skipper is uncommonly candid, and his ability to foresee potential developments within a game is often uncanny.
Verducci’s conversations with Maddon demonstrate the intense level of preparation required of major managers, especially when a World Series title is on the line. Although Maddon has become a cult figure because of his idiosyncratic personality and unconventional leadership style, Verducci’s work highlights the skipper’s baseball acumen and tactical shrewdness.
Maddon’s quixotic quotations give The Cubs Way some added flavor, but the book also benefits from Verducci’s knack for incisive, vibrant storytelling. The author summarizes the 2016 World Series while effortlessly weaving in anecdotes about Theo Epstein’s early tenure with the club, Joe Maddon’s unique baseball career, and Jake Arrieta’s evolution from journeyman to ace. These stories help support the book’s central idea that the Cubs did not become a juggernaut overnight, but were instead built through a series of savvy player evaluations and paradigm shifts throughout the organization.
Addressing the Chapman Issue
While The Cubs Way is highly enjoyable, it is not without flaws. For instance, the book’s argument that the Cubs sought players with upstanding character does not entirely hold up to scrutiny. After all, the club traded for closer Aroldis Chapman after he served a suspension for violation of the league’s domestic violence policy.
To Verducci’s credit, he refuses to ignore this apparent contradiction in the Cubs’ decision-making process. Rather, he explains the means by which the organization investigated the Chapman incident and why the front office felt comfortable adding him to the roster. The Chapman acquisition is still problematic, but Verducci does not absolve the club for its choice.
Overall, The Cubs Way is recommended reading for anyone who is curious about roster construction and in-game management at the big league level. The text is exceptionally detailed, and Verducci’s evocative writing makes it easy to devour pages at a time.
Though some may find the Joe Maddon interview excerpts to be indulgent and self-serving, others will undoubtedly be amused by the skipper’s candor. Ultimately, the book is an illuminating glimpse into how a franchise reversed its fortunes and rose to the top of the baseball world.
With Maddon headed to the Angels, it’s worth taking a new look at his leadership style with this book. Pick up your copy here!
