The Chicago Cubs passed their first series of tests Sunday, ending the most treacherous part of their 2025 schedule.<\/p>\n
They survived Japan and jet lag, rain delays and cold waves. They survived Shohei Ohtani<\/a>, the National League West, and Justin Steele\u2019s season-ending elbow injury<\/a>. Oh, and they won a game despite a 10-run inning by the Arizona Diamondbacks, and the season series against that team despite Eugenio Su\u00e1rez\u2019s five home runs in 24 at-bats off Cubs pitching, which was one more than he hit Saturday against the Atlanta Braves, becoming the 19th player to hit four home runs<\/a> in one major-league game.<\/p>\n After Sunday\u2019s 3-1 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in 10 innings, the Cubs can relax on Monday before it\u2019s on to the next phase \u2014 divisional play.<\/p>\n No matter how they felt about the Cubs going into the season, Cubs fans have reason to feel optimistic<\/a> after what they\u2019ve seen in the first 29 games.<\/p>\n \u201cResilience-building\u201d is a term manager Craig Counsell likes to use, and it aptly describes the opening month obstacle course the Cubs overcame before starting their first stretch of NL Central games Tuesday with three-game series in Pittsburgh and Milwaukee.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve hit and run, and they\u2019ve run and hit. The Kyle Tucker Effect on the lineup has been glaring, helping the Cubs to top the major league in runs. And for the first time in most of our lifetimes, the Cubs could actually lead the league in stolen bases. Pete Crow-Armstrong was tied<\/a> for the major-league lead Sunday with 12 steals, and could break the 122-year-old franchise set in 1903 by Frank Chance, who swiped 67 bases. The last Cub to steal as many as 50 bases was Juan Pierre, who finished with 58 in 2006. According to team historian Ed Hartig, the last time the Cubs led the NL in steals was in 1939 with 61, while they haven\u2019t led the majors in steals since 1894 with 332.<\/p>\n How the Cubs have done it has also opened eyes. They\u2019ve done it in comeback fashion, including the wild, 13-11 win over Arizona<\/a> that will go down in Cubs history, and the 11-10 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers<\/a> three games later.<\/p>\n They\u2019ve won when their bullpen has let them down, forcing them to make those aforementioned comebacks. They\u2019ve won with base-running smarts, beating out throws to second on potential fielder\u2019s choice grounders to key rallies. They\u2019ve won in spite of some standout performances like those of Su\u00e1rez or the Dodgers\u2019 Tommy Edman, who hit home runs off the Cubs in three different stadiums \u2014 the Tokyo Dome, Dodger Stadium and Wrigley Field.<\/p>\n Photos: Chicago Cubs fall to the Philadelphia Phillies in extra innings<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n For what it\u2019s worth, they\u2019ve also won with a goose nesting in the Wrigley bleachers during the opening series against the San Diego Padres and continued to win in the post-goose days. PETA\u2019s thank you letter<\/a> to president Jed Hoyer for the ethical treatment of the goose was just another feather in Hoyer\u2019s cap this season, along with acquiring Tucker and signing catcher Carson Kelly.<\/p>\n The Cubs still figure to be a work-in-progress for the immediate future as Hoyer and Counsell deal with issues like Ben Brown\u2019s inconsistency, the bullpen\u2019s high-leverage ups and downs, the third base conundrum and whatever injury issues will crop up unexpectedly, as they tend to do.<\/p>\n