Joe Maddon: 4 Wins From World Series 'In Your Freshman Year Is Not A Bad Thing'
(CBS) Shortly after his Cubs were humbled by being swept out of the NLCS by the Mets on Wednesday night at Wrigley Field, manager Joe Maddon expressed how proud of the 2015 season he was.
In Maddon's first year in Chicago, the Cubs won 97 regular-season games and advanced to the NLCS for the first time since 2003. They did it all with four rookies in the everyday lineup by season's end, with success that was unprecedented for such an inexperienced group.
"For me personally, I walked in the door not really knowing anybody in Arizona (for spring training), hardly anybody in Arizona when we got there in February," Maddon said. "And how we built relationships and a created a culture within one year is pretty spectacular within the clubhouse. I mentioned to them how important it is as we move forward as we go to spring training next year that we know exactly what we want to do and how we want to do it.
"And on top of that, our young players have learned how to win on a major league level, which matters. To get within four games of the World Series in your freshman year is not a bad thing."
Maddon admitted he was surprised that the Mets swept the Cubs in four games, capping it off with an 8-3 win in Game 4.
"Of course, we wanted to go further," Maddon said. "Of course, it's highly disappointing. But however, you got to look at the positives that are involved. That's what I want them to really focus on when they go home and have a chance to reflect."
While his Cubs had plenty of shaky moments, Maddon gave all the credit to the Mets.
"It's not so much to be disappointed in our performance," Maddon said. "They were just that good for four days.
"They were just outstanding for four games."
Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo did his best to put the loss in perspective as well.
"No one had us here right now," Rizzo said. "We proved ourselves."
