March 23--Joe Maddon thought little of jinxes or curses when he saw four of his players on the cover of an upcoming regional Sports Illustrated cover.
The magazine picked the Cubs to go to their first World Series since 1945, but did not pick them to win their first since 1908.
"lt's a wonderful stage for us, but it doesn't mean anything other than it's good reading," Maddon said Tuesday. "It's great photographs. When I was a kid you couldn't' wait for that to come out. Before that, Sporting News. Sporting News was hot. Get that ink all over your hands. When I see these things, I reference that in my mind's eye."
Maddon has been preaching to his team to "embrace the target" this season, and he knows things such as the SI cover only make that target larger.
"Beyond Cubs fans, other people are going to like us or hate us more because of that. It's good stuff," he said.
As for the prediction that the Cubs would lose to the Astros?
"Just get us there," Maddon said. "I'll be happy with that. I'm sure they've been wrong on occasion."
