With some other franchises, this wouldn't be the case, but we're talking about the . They are technically still in the midst of the best run of succe s in franchise history. I suppose an argument could be made for 1906-10, but there are so many more teams now and the game is so different it's not even worth comparing.Seriously, though, take a look at the Cubs on a season-by-season basis before the 2015 season. You'll see zero postseason appearances between 1945 and 1984. You'll find six playoff appearances from 1984-2014, a stretch that included three trips to the NLCS, but only one series win (the 2003 NLDS). In all, there were nine playoff game wins with six of them coming in 2003, a postseason that included their most notorious choke job.Since the start of 2015, though, the Cubs have Brett Connolly Kids Jersey been to the playoffs five times in six years with three division titles. They have three trips to the NLCS, their first pennant since 1945 and first World Series title since 1908. There were six "series" wins (including the 2015 wild card game) and 19 playoff game victories in all. They haven't had a losing record since 2014, the longest stretch without a sub-.500 record since 1967-72. It truly is the golden era of Cubs baseball.But.Oh man, that word? Yeah. The 2015 deep run and 2016 title raised expectations and with such a young and exciting roster -- at least position-player-wise -- people were talking dynasty. The Cubs did have a huge second half in 2017 and beat the Nats in the NLDS, but since then, they've gone 1-7 in playoff games and that doesn't include losing the one-game playoff for the NL Central title to the in 2018. It does include a two-game sweep at the hands of the in the wild-card round last year in which the Cubs' offense mustered one run (a solo home run) in 18 innings. The 13-3 start vs. the rest of the season and the ensuing postseason flop was a bit of a microcosm for how the golden era here has gone. There was so much hope and they did get the one title, but after that it was nothing more than a tease.We'll discu s this more toward the end of this preview, but this season is very likely the end of the road for the lingering vestiges of the championship core.On that totally sunny note, let's preview the 2021 Cubs.2021 SportsLine projection: 86-76World Series odds (via William Hill Sportsbook):+40002020 Record: 34-26 (won NL Central, swept by Marlins in wild card round) , CF , 1B , 3B , LF , SS , C , RF , 2BBench:C , IF , IF , IF Micheal Haley Women Jersey , OF It's still po sible Bote takes the everyday job at second base and that Hoerner is sent to Triple-A to get some seasoning. He's only played in 89 minor-league games and none of them came at Triple-A while he's hit just .247/.309/.333 at the big-league level in 207 plate appearances. Of course, he's killing the ball in the spring in what is the Cubs only position battle and the Triple-A season is being delayed, so they have little reason to make him sit around and wait.Play around with 2-6 in the batting order however you want. Troy Brouwer Jersey It's likely David Ro s does the same on a daily basis until/if things settle in. The only sure thing is they won't hit the lefties Rizzo and Pederson back-to-back or in the six-hole next to fellow lefty Heyward.Speaking of Pederson, he's never really been allowed to face lefties on a regular basis (he has 2,132 plate appearances against right-handed pitching and 385 against southpaws), but he's hit just .191/.266/.310 when he has. The Cubs have decided to let him go full time. It'll be interesting to see how it works out. , RHP , RHP , RHP , RHP , RHPBullpen: CL , SU , SU , LHP , LHP , MR , MR , MR in the rotation is a distinct po sibility and the Cubs have even discu sed doing something advanced with him and/or Alzolay, such as using an opener or just having them face the order one time or maybe a strict two-times-through edict. Regardle s, there are actually six starters fully on the radar. Or seven? has been impre sing scouts in camp.As for Kimbrel, his two years with the Cubs include some high-profile meltdowns and awful numbers (6.00 ERA, 1.53 WHIP), but something seemed to shake loose late in 2020. In his last 14 appearances (he only made 18 total, so this just lops off his first four), he had a 1.42 ERA with 26 strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings. Walks had previously been a problem, but in September, he struck out 13 in 7 1/3 innings without i suing a single walk. He didn't allow an extra-base hit, either, holding opposing hitters to a tidy .125/.125/.125 line. If he really did get fixed, the bullpen won't be a problem at all. Here are three questions about the Cubs' 2021 season.Leaving out whatever happens with the fifth spot, the top four of the Cubs' rotation is a total throwback in terms of fastball velocity and putting the emphasis on defense. Crash Davis would be proud.Of 209 qualified pitchers in 2020, here are where the Cubs' top four starters ranked in average Henrik Borgstrom Men Jersey fastball velocity:Jake Arrieta, 91.9 mph, 141stAlec Mills, 89.8 mph, 181stZach Davies, 88.4 mph, 191stKyle Hendricks, 87.4 mph, 197thOnly Davies came even close to averaging a strikeout per inning (8.2 K/9; Hendricks was second at 7.1), which means an overwhelming majority of outs are going to come via the defense. Many people will like the aesthetics! This puts the spotlight on the Cubs' defenders, of course, and they'll likely be up to the task. The Cubs ranked fifth in baseball last season in defensive efficiency. The infield has the chance to be excellent with Rizzo and Baez capable of elite-tier glovework; Hoerner, too, if he wins the job. Bryant is perfectly capable of above-average work as well. Heyward isn't other-worldly in right anymore, but he's still well above average. Happ and Pederson don't figure to be great, but Marisnick as a late-inning center fielder pushing Happ to left is a game-changer. Contreras has a cannon behind the plate and really stepped up his framing game last year, too. A Contreras-Rizzo-Hoerner-Bryant-Baez-Happ-Marisnick-Heyward alignment is enough to help any Cubs pitcher sleep very peacefully at night.Defensive efficiency measures the percentage of balls put in play that are converted into outs. The Cubs need to be toward the top of that leaderboard -- the talent on hand says they will be -- because their rotation doesn't figure to keep many balls out of play.So many times these past few seasons, I've found myself looking at the Cubs' lineup and hearing Brad Pitt as Billy Beane wondering, "if he's a good hitter, why doesn't he hit good?" The personnel just feels like it is constantly underachieving. During parts of 2017-19 under Joe Maddon it seemed like maybe the culprit was his constant Frank Vatrano Kids Jersey tinkering and changes in approach from different hitting coaches. Perhaps the pandemic changes affected things last season. Or maybe we're just coming up with excuses and they aren't as good as many tho