“This is our year.” As a Cub fan, I and all the other faithful hear ourselves saying these words every year about this time in the calendar. Spring Training officially commenced Feb. 19,  and some experts are predicting that this actually might be the year the Cubbies pull through to the World Series.

For the Cubs, it has been a long process. Sure, it has been over a hundred years since the last World Series title on the north side, but the process of constructing the roster to what it is now has taken years. The rebuilding of the Cubs truly started back in 2011 when they hired Theo Epstein as their general manager. Since then, Epstein has worked his magic to make solid trades and build up the Cubs’ farm system that has some of the most exciting young prospects in the game. “The Cubs have been patiently building up their farm system with young players. This year, those players get a chance to play in the majors and should make the Cubs more competitive,” said Mr. Tonsoni, an avid Cubs fan. Those young prospects that the Cubs have been building in their farm system include 3B Kris Bryant, SS Addison Russell, and OF Jorge Soler who are ranked 2nd, 5th, and 22nd on ESPN’s top prospect list, respectively. Soler has already spent time in the Cub uniform, but many are saying that Bryant and Russell will both be called up to the Cubs roster this year.

As the Cubs organization has been building up its great farm system, Epstein has wasted little time upgrading the roster this winter. Epstein got the ball rolling by hiring ex-Rays manager Joe Maddon as the next manager of the ball club. Maddon had experienced success with the Rays and is regarded as one of the top managers in the league. The Cubs followed Maddon’s hiring with the one thing that the Cubs truly needed, an ace pitcher in Jon Lester who signed a multi-million dollar contract with the Cubs. Lester has been one of the best pitchers in Major League Baseball the last few seasons, boasting a 2.46 ERA in 2014. Following the Lester signing, the Cubs got key acquisitions in all-star catcher Miguel Montero in a trade with the Diamondbacks and outfielder Dexter Fowler from the Astros.

There is no doubt that it has been a magical offseason on the north side of Chicago. Expert projections (other than the one in Back to the Future III, which says the Cubs have won the 2015 World Series) have the Cubs in the mix at the end of the year. Mr. Tonsoni agreed. “I look forward to watching the Cubs play meaningful games in September and October, he said.” Many of the Cubs faithful, for the first time in many years, can say without being an absurd stretch, “This is our year.”