As Major League Baseball attempts to forge a safe path forward, the Cubs are holding out hope the 2020 season continues to the end.

That’s because the Cubs feel like they can accomplish something special this year.

After finishing off a sweep of the Pirates at Wrigley Field this weekend, the Cubs are now off to a 7-2 start on the shortened season and looking every bit a playoff contender.

The lineup is deep and relentless, the starting rotation is firing on all cylinders and the David Ross Effect has been very much real for this ballclub. The bullpen currently sports an 8.07 ERA, but Ross has thus far been able to work around it and the Cubs have been aggressive with augmenting the unit from the South Bend roster.

Kris Bryant’s stomach issues this weekend represented the first real scare for the Cubs in terms of a coronavirus outbreak infiltrating the clubhouse, but all of his tests have come back negative. They’re still the only team in the league without a positive test by a player on the roster since the intake process began for summer camp in late June.

But around the league, the pandemic news has been troublesome.

The Marlins outbreak affected multiple teams last week and now the Cardinals are experiencing an outbreak of their own that continued with reports of more positive tests Sunday. The Cubs are supposed to head to St. Louis for a series next weekend.

“Whenever I read about an outbreak or whenever I see negative news associated with Major League Baseball, it kind of sends a shock through my system,” Cubs GM Jed Hoyer said. “I like the way things are going here. We’ve got a group of players that have really responded to David Ross. They’re playing hard — you see the energy they’re playing with every night.

“Everyone’s totally into this and I want it to keep going. It’s as simple as that. I want this season to keep going for the Cubs because I love the way we’re playing, the way we’re acting. And for baseball because I think it’s incredibly important as an industry that we play a season.

“For all those reasons, whenever I see news that is negative or threatening or what have you, it’s something that does not sit well at all.”

The Cubs have continued to find success in staying safe throughout the ongoing pandemic by holding each other accountable. They’re taking precautions like using hand sanitizer after postgame high-fives and reminding teammates to wear a mask if they happen to see somebody not doing so in the clubhouse.

They understand what’s going on in other clubhouses and around the country, but they also know they can’t control any of that.

“We gotta worry about our own bubble,” Jon Lester said.

Lester has been a huge part of the Cubs’ stellar rotation, as he now has a 0.82 ERA on the season through 2 starts including Sunday’s quality outing.

The veteran southpaw has been around a lot of winning throughout his career, with three World Series rings and 154 postseason innings to his name.

He sees something special about this 2020 Cubs group in the early going.

“You got everybody in that lineup pulling the rope,” Lester said. “The substitutions we’re making, guys are coming in and giving quality at-bats and playing good defense. It just seems like guys are locked in to what we need to do. Guys know their roles, guys know what they need to do day in and day out and prepare for that.

“And I think it shows on the field. We’re flying around, we’re playing with a lot of energy and it’s just fun to hear our dugout. … It’s pretty cool to hear the energy and feel the energy from these guys. It’s just been a lot of fun to be a part of this last week.”

Javy Báez — who notched the walk-off hit in Sunday’s win — has been clamoring for the last couple seasons for the Cubs to play more as a cohesive unit and loves the way the team has responded this year.

“We’re giving everything to the team,” Báez said, “and our success this year is gonna be as a team the whole season.”

That’s played out so far in the first week-and-a-half of the season and the Cubs want to keep the good times rolling.

“We’re playing great baseball. We’re having fun, we’re making the most of this,” Kyle Schwarber said. “We’re just trying to go out there and win baseball games. With the great leadership here that we have with our manager and all the veterans here in the clubhouse and our coaching staff, it’s just a perfect mix.”