They began the season on April 5, 2015, in a first-ever night-game home-opener against theSt. Louis Cardinals at partially renovated Wrigley Field, and finished the regular season on October 4, 2015, on the road against theMilwaukee Brewers.
The Cubs finished the season with the third-best record in baseball (97–65) which was also the third-best in their division, finishing one game behind thePittsburgh Pirates (98–64) and three games behind the division winner, the rival St. Louis Cardinals (100–62). As a result, they qualified for the second wild card spot for the postseason, their first postseason appearance since2008, and defeated the Pirates in theNLWC Game to advance to theNLDS against the Cardinals. The Cubs defeated St. Louis three games to one to advance to theNLCS against theNew York Mets, the Cubs' first appearance in the NLCS since2003. However, they were swept in four games.
In 2015,Forbes valued the Cubs at $1.8 billion, ranking them 17th out of all sports franchises in the world, and the fifth highest in all MLB.[1] The Cubs attendance for the regular season was 2,959,812, up over 300,000 from the previous year.[2]
The Cubs finished the 2014 season 73–89 to finish in last place in the Central Division. Following the season, the Cubs fired managerRick Renteria[3] and hired formerTampa Bay Rays managerJoe Maddon.[4]
On Monday, September 29, one day after the conclusion of the2014 season, a $575 million four-year renovation project toWrigley Field began. The bleachers in left and right field were expanded, the stadium was extended further onto both Waveland and Sheffield Avenues, and seven new outfield signs were installed along with a 5,700-square-footjumbotron scoreboard in the left fieldbleachers and a 2,400 square foot video scoreboard in the right field bleachers. The parking lots along Clark Street were excavated for underground players' locker rooms and lounges.[5][6]
The Cubs decided not to retainMike Brumley as the assistant hitting coach.Bill Mueller, the hitting coach, resigned over the decision. On October 9. 2014John Mallee, formerly theAstros hitting coach, was hired as his replacement.Eric Hinske was the assistant hitting coach andDoug Dascenzo was signed to replace him as first base/outfield coach.[7]In late October 2014, quality assurance coach Jose Castro resigned to work withAtlanta Braves hitting coachKevin Seitzer.[8]
On October 31, the Cubs fired first year managerRick Renteria.[9] On Monday, November 3, The Cubs announced the signing ofJoe Maddon to a five-year contract as manager of the team.[10] Former CubHenry Blanco was hired to be the quality assurance coach on November 22.[11] At the start of the 2015 season,Brandon Hyde went from 2014 season bench coach to first base and Doug Dascenzo was the outfield coach.Dave Martinez was bench coach. On February 24, 2015,Manny Ramirez was hired as a batting consultant, splitting time between Chicago and AAA Iowa.[12] Also,Kevin Youkilis was given a part-time job as a scouting and player development consultant.
In June 2014, the Cubs announced an end to their radio play-by-play history onWGN (720-AM) radio which dated back to 1924. In a new partnership withCBS Radio, the radio broadcast of their games moved toWBBM (780-AM) for the 2015 season.[13]
The Cubs finalized a new television broadcast agreement with long-time over-the-air carrierWGN-TV (Channel 9), in which the station would carry a reduced slate of 45 games per season. The team also signed a new broadcast agreement with ABC-owned stationWLS-TV (Channel 7), in which they will show 25 games annually;[14] this deal replacedWCIU-TV as the Cubs' secondary over-the-air television outlet. Both agreements with WLS and WGN run through the end of the 2019 season. Play-by-play announcerLen Kasper and color commentatorJim Deshaies became employees of the Cubs rather than WGN-TV.[15]
As a result of a new programming strategy implemented byTribune Media forWGN America, the cable superstation ceased televising Cubs games (as well as that of theChicago White Sox andBulls) to a national audience as of January 2015. This marked the end of a 36-season run of Cubs games televised on the national version of WGN-TV.
The Cubs created affiliate stations to complement the 2015 television and radio schedule.[16]
RHPJason Hammel signed with Chicago Cubs for a 2-year, $18 million contract after being previously traded in July 2014 to theOakland Athletics in exchange for top prospectAddison Russell, among other players.[19]
LHPJon Lester signed with the Chicago Cubs for six years for $155 million, with a vested option for a seventh. He was officially introduced on December 15, 2014.[21]
At the conclusion of the first month of the season the Cubs had a record of 12–8. It was their first winning April since the2008 season. They led the National League instolen bases with 25, were third inon-base percentage with .329, and sixth in acquiringwalks with 71.[27] The pitching staff allowed the fewest walks in the National League with 41, they were third inWHIP with 1.15, fifth in striking out opposing batters with 181, sixth in opposing playersbatting average with .240, sixth inearned run average with 3.71 and allowed only 14home runs against them.[28] During the month, the Cubs played in three extra-inning ballgames, winning all three.[29]
April 5 – The Cubs pay tribute to the lateErnie Banks before the first opening night game in Cubs history.[30]
April 17 – Heralded rookieKris Bryant plays in his first Major League game.[31]
April 5–30 – Due to delays in the1060 Project, the entire outfield section was unavailable for use by fans attending Cubs games. Attendance figures for the month of April were affected by approximately 5,000 fans per home game.[32]
At the end of the first two months of the season the Cubs had a record of 26–22. It was the first winning two-month period since the end of the2008 season. They were third in the National League instolen bases with 46 and second at receiving walks at 192. They did, however, lead the league in striking out at 541. The pitching staff allowed the second fewest walks in the National League with 140, they were third inWHIP, third in striking out opposing batters, sixth in opposing playersbatting average with .246, fifth inearned run average with 3.72, and allowed 56home runs against them.[33]
May 11 – Left and center field bleacher seats were available for occupancy for the first time during the season during a night game with theNew York Mets.[34]
May 14 – The Cubs four-game sweep of theNY Mets was their first over the Mets at Wrigley Field since Aug. 6–9, 1992. The May 14 victory was Joe Maddon's 800th career win.
May 31 – For the first time in nearly a half-decade the Cubs finished at or above .500 for two months in a row with a May 31 victory against theKansas City Royals.
June 11 – The right field bleacher seats were available for occupancy for the first time during the season during a night game with theCincinnati Reds.Dexter Fowler hit the first home run to land into the newly renovated right-field seats at Wrigley Field when fans were present.[35]
June 17 – The Cubs 17–0 victory atProgressive Field against theCleveland Indians was the largest shutout win by the Cubs since May 13, 1969, a 19–0 win over the Padres at Wrigley Field.[36]
June 30 – The Cubs finished 14–13 for the month; the third month in a row with a winning record.
July 13 – At the All-Star break the Cubs had a record of 47–40. They were seventh in Major League baseball instolen bases with 57 and fourth at receiving walks at 293. They were second in the league in striking out at 799. The pitching staff allowed the fewest hits against in baseball with 140, they were first inWHIP at 1.16, third in striking out opposing batters with 754, first in opposing playersbatting average with .234, fifth inearned run average with 3.72, and allowed 56home runs.[37]
July 25 – Future Cubs pitcherCole Hamels then of thePhiladelphia Phillies pitched ano-hitter against the Cubs,[38] marking the first time the Cubs have been no-hit in 7,921 games, which was the longest streak in the Major Leagues.[39] It was Hamels last start in a Phillies uniform before he was traded to theTexas Rangers.
The Cubs finished a fourth month in a row over .500 for the first time since the 2008 season. With a record of 55–47, they were two games out of the second position to qualify for a wild card post-season playoff game.
August 10 – After a four-game sweep of theSan Francisco Giants, the Cubs had moved into the wild card spot and held a 3.5 game lead for the second place wild card qualifier.
August 23 – The Cubs swept theAtlanta Braves, their fourth, four-game sweep of the season; first time since 1945. The Cubs led the NL in both home runs and runs scored in the second half.
For the fifth month in a row, the Cubs finished a month over .500 with an August record of 19−9. They were 5.5 games ahead of San Francisco for the second wild card slot. They led the majors in striking out with 1,208 and had the lowest team batting average at .241. The pitching staff struck out 1,128 batters (second in the majors) and had a WHIP of 1.20. Kris Bryant was named the NL Rookie of the Month for August and Jake Arrieta was named the Pitcher of the Month and Player of the Week for August 24–30.
September 11 – The Cubs swept a double header against the Phillies guaranteeing them a winning record for the first time since2009. Jake Arrieta won his 19th game of the season making him the first pitcher in the 2015 season to hit the mark; it was his 16th straight quality start, allowing just one run over eight innings, and dropping his ERA to 1.99.
September 25 – The Cubs were defeated by their division rival Pittsburgh, 3–2, but still clinched their first postseason berth since 2008 when the San Francisco Giants lost to theOakland A's.
October 4 – At the conclusion of the season the Cubs had a record of 97–65, third best in Major League Baseball. The 97 wins were the most for a first-year Cubs manager. Their record away from Wrigley Field was 48−33, the Cubs' best road record since 1945. Cubs' hitters led the majors in strikeouts with 1,518 and were third from the bottom with runners in scoring position (.237), but they were fifth inon-base percentage with .321 and first in acquiringwalks with 567. The pitching staff allowed the fewest hits in baseball with 1,276, were first inWHIP with 1.15, first in striking out opposing batters with 1,431, and third inearned run average with 3.36. Cubs rookies (Bryant, Schwarber, Russell and Soler) hit 65 home runs, setting a franchise record.[41] The previous high was 58 set in 1966.
November 16 – Kris Bryant won the 2015 National LeagueMajor League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award by a unanimous first place vote. San Francisco Giants third basemanMatt Duffy and Pittsburgh Pirates infielderJung-ho Kang placed behind Bryant. Bryant became the first Cub to win the award since catcherGeovany Soto in 2008.
November 17 – Manager Joe Maddon won theManager of the Year Award overSt. Louis Cardinals managerMike Matheny and NL-ChampionsNew York Mets managerTerry Collins. Maddon set the franchise record for most wins in the first season as manager, with 97 wins. Maddon became the seventh manager in MLB history to win the award in both leagues, as Maddon previously won the award in 2008 and 2011 with Tampa Bay. He became the first Cubs manager to win the award sinceLou Piniella in 2008.
November 18 – Starting pitcher Jake Arrieta won the 2015 NLCy Young Award over Dodgers pitchersZack Greinke andClayton Kershaw. Arrieta had a stellar 2015 campaign, going 22–6 with a 1.77 ERA. Arrieta set a major league record with the lowest second-half ERA over a minimum of 12 starts with an ERA of 0.75. He went 14–1 in the second half of the season, as well as no-hitting the Dodgers on August 30. Arrieta is the first Cub to win the award since Hall of FamerGreg Maddux in 1992. The Cubs also became the first team in MLB to win three major awards since the2001 Seattle Mariners.
13-year-veteran right-handed relief pitcherRafael Soriano agreed to terms on June 8 and reported to a Cubs training facility in the Dominican Republic.[42][43]
On July 3, 2015,Clayton Richard was traded by thePittsburgh Pirates to the Chicago Cubs for cash.[44] He was designated for assignment on July 22 and relief pitcherYoervis Medina was added to the roster. Richard was optioned to theIowa Cubs on July 23 and was again designated for assignment on August 3 but was re-signed as a free agent on August 5.[45]
On July 19, 2015, RHPEdwin Jackson was designated for assignment to make room on the major league roster for relieverRafael Soriano.[46] On August 14, Jackson signed a contract with the Atlanta Braves for the remainder of the 2015 season.[47]
Jake Arrieta pitched a complete game shutout, striking out 11 batters and allowing only five hits to defeat thePittsburgh Pirates 4–0 in the 2015 National League Wild Card Game. The Cubs were paced offensively byDexter Fowler andKyle Schwarber, who combined for five hits in seven at bats, each with a home run.[49] For the first time in 12 years, the Cubs won a postseason game after losing their previous nine postseason games in a row and advanced to play theSt. Louis Cardinals in the National League Division Series.[50]
John Lackey allowed only three singles in seven innings and the Cardinals beat the Cubs 4–0 in the NLDS opening game. RookiesTommy Pham andStephen Piscotty each homered for the Cardinals.[51] Cubs starter,Jon Lester, gave up three runs in 7 1/3 innings and left the game trailing 2–0.
In their first divisional game win since2003, the Cubs got five second inning runs including a two-run home run fromJorge Soler en route to a 6–3 win. Cubs starterKyle Hendricks pitched well, but allowed a home run to the leadoff batter, third basemanMatt Carpenter in the first, and back-to-back solo shots toKolten Wong andRandal Grichuk in the fifth inning which led to his exit.Travis Wood,Trevor Cahill andHéctor Rondón worked 4 1/3 innings of relief.[52]
The Cubs got 13 hits to supportJake Arrieta who struck out nine Cardinals over 5-2/3 innings while giving up four runs, the most he had allowed since June 16. Four rookies started for the Cubs and three of them helped to set a Major League playoff team record with six home runs in an 8–6 victory. Six different Cubs players homered –Kyle Schwarber in the second inning,Starlin Castro in the fourth,Kris Bryant andAnthony Rizzo back-to-back in the fifth,Jorge Soler in the sixth, andDexter Fowler in the eighth inning.Jason Heyward hit a sixth inning homer off Arrieta andStephen Piscotty hit a two-run ninth inning homer offHéctor Rondón for the Cardinals. The eight total home runs for both teams set a Major League mark for one postseason game. ShortstopAddison Russell left the game in the fourth with left hamstring tightness after sliding head first into third on a triple.[53] Russell would not play the remainder of the postseason.
Eight Chicago Cub pitchers allowed eight hits and combined for 15 strikeouts to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals and win a postseason series for the first time ever at Wrigley Field.[54] The score was 2–0 in favor of the Cardinals when the second batter of the game,Stephen Piscotty, hit a two-run homer. In the bottom of the second inning, starting pitcherJason Hammel drove inStarlin Castro with a sharp single to center andAddison Russell's replacement at shortstop,Javier Báez, followed with a three-run homer to right off Cardinals starter, John Lackey. The Cards rallied and tied the score in the top of the sixth, but the rally ended with a strong throw to catcherMiguel Montero from right fielderJorge Soler to throw outTony Cruz at the plate as Cruz attempted to score the lead run from second.[55]Anthony Rizzo hit a go-ahead solo homer off Cardinal relieverKevin Siegrist in the bottom of the inning on a two out, 0-2 pitch.[56]Kyle Schwarber added an insurance run in the seventh inning, also off Siegrist, with a home run ball that landed on top of the new right field Budweiser scoreboard.[57]Pedro Strop in the eighth andHéctor Rondón in the ninth struck out four of the seven batters they faced to preserve the 6–4 victory.[58]
For the third game in the series, the Mets scored in the first with a double by Yoenis Céspedes that drove in David Wright off of Cubs starter, Kyle Hendricks. A home run by Kyle Schwarber tied the game in the bottom of the first. In the third, the Mets responded with Daniel Murphy's solo homer, his fifth consecutive postseason game with a home run, to put the Mets up 2–1.Jorge Soler's homer in the fourth again tied the game. The bottom fell out for the Cubs in the sixth when a wild pitch byTrevor Cahill (the losing pitcher) on strike three allowed Yoenis Céspedes to score, putting the Mets up 3–2. A Céspedes single and a sacrifice grounder byLucas Duda in the seventh drove in Wright and Murphy, for a final score of 5–2 and series deficit of 3–0 for the Cubs.
As in every previous game of the series, the Mets took control of the game in the first inning when first baseman Lucas Duda hit a three-run home run to center field against Cubs starterJason Hammel. The next batter, catcherTravis d'Arnaud, also hit a home run to make it 4–0. In the second inning, Cubs relief pitcherTravis Wood allowed a two-run double to Duda making it a 6–0 game. Duda's five RBIs tied a Mets record for most in a postseason game. Chicago's first rally came in the fourth when they loaded the bases with no outs for second baseman Starlin Castro. Mets third baseman David Wright made a leaping grab of Castro's line drive to prevent an extra base hit and two runs. However, the Cubs got their first run on an RBI groundout by left fielder Kyle Schwarber. Shortstop Javier Báez popped out in foul territory, stranding two runners and the Cubs were down 6–1. In the fifth inning, after outfielders Dexter Fowler and Jorge Soler reached base, Mets relieverBartolo Colón struck out third baseman Kris Bryant and the Cubs again stranded two baserunners. In the eighth inning, New York's Daniel Murphy hit a two-run homer, his fourth home run of the series, his seventh of the postseason, and his sixth consecutive game with a home run, a new MLB postseason record. Bryant hit a consolation two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth to put the Mets lead to 8–3. When closerJeurys Familia struck out Fowler in the ninth, the Mets were back in the World Series for the first time since2000. The Cubs never had a lead at any point in the four-game series. After hitting .529 with the four home runs and a 1.294slugging percentage for the series, New York's Daniel Murphy was named series MVP.
Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts
^Todd, Jeff (August 5, 2015)."Cubs Re-Sign Clayton Richard".mlbtraderumors.com. MLB Trade Rumors.Archived from the original on September 5, 2015. RetrievedAugust 29, 2015.
