The Chicago Cubs are gearing up for the 2026 regular season to begin. There is a lot of excitement surrounding the franchise after one of its biggest offseasons in recent memory. They have a lot of expectations as they prepare for Thursday’s Opening Day. Where does one major outlet have the Cubs ranked?
The Chicago Cubs rank in the top five in The Athletic’s MLB power rankings
The Athletic released its preseason power rankings before Opening Day begins. The rankings are selected by a group of The Athletic’s baseball writers from local and national levels to create the power rankings. The Cubs were able to be in the top five, as they were tied with the New York Mets for fourth place in MLB. Johnny Flores Jr wrote a snippet of why the Cubs are ranked so highly in these power rankings:
“Chicago had as close to a ‘Plan A’ offseason as you can get. Pursue a superstar free agent and sign them to a multi-year deal? Check. Trade prospect depth to land a starter with top-of-the-rotation potential and multiple years of club control? Check. Reconfigure the bullpen so that manager Craig Counsell has multiple ‘out-getters’ to deploy behind closer Daniel Palencia? Also check. Those developments, plus a multiyear extension for president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer, have given the Cubs a level of promise and security it has not had in sometime. A season after an NLDS appearance, the Cubs appear primed for their first consecutive postseason berths since 2015-18.”
The only teams ahead of them are:
- Los Angeles Dodgers (Average ranking 1.0)
- New York Yankees (3.5)
- Seattle Mariners (3.5)
- New York Mets (5.3)
Chicago also has an average positioning of 5.3, which shows they are significant threats heading into the season for the World Series. With the depth in their starting rotation as well as a strong lineup, it is difficult to contain expectations for what they can do this year. It will be intriguing to see if Chicago can climb the power rankings as the season progresses.
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