Ross hopes '20 vibe comes as 'shock' for Cubs

SAN DIEGO -- There have been plenty of text messages and phone conversations, but those do not carry the same weight as an in-person gathering.

As David Ross makes the transition from teammate to Cubs manager for some of his players, he recently had a unique chance to gauge how they would act around him now. This past weekend, Ross attended Kyle Schwarber's wedding, along with members of the team. He was there as a friend, but the reality now is Ross is also the boss.

How did they act around him?

"A lot of questions, a lot of questions," Ross said with a laugh on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings.

None of the inquiries were too serious. Ross quipped that one thing on his players' minds was what the dress code would be on his watch. The Cubs' new manager said the real conversations will start taking place after the New Year and throughout Spring Training. That is when it will be time to hit the reset button on the environment and expectations.

"I really want to keep it very casual until we get to Spring Training and I can give them my true voice," Ross said. "I've got a lot of things that I'm jotting down and want to speak real truths to some of the guys that I know and respect and have friendships with. We're going to have some real conversations and just hit 'em with where I'm coming from and what I expect and what I know about them to be true already before this thing started.

"There will be a change. There will be obviously some boundaries and a line, but I also don't want to change who I am as a person. That's why I got this job, and that's why those guys respected me at the time. So, there's going to be a true balance for that, and that's going to come from me."

That said, Ross added that he hopes some of what the Cubs' players experience this spring comes as a shock after the past five seasons under Joe Maddon.

"I hope so. I hope there's a little bit of shock for the players. I'm kind of relying on that," Ross said. "I want to be different, as much as Joe brought to the table and all that I respect that he's done. I'll keep a lot of the music on. I like the vibe that he created. I think I'll mix up a little bit of some things early on. There will be a little bit more structure."

As he mentioned in his introductory news conference, Ross reiterated that a goal of his this spring will be to create a more team-focused approach. He wants players to work together more often, rather than just worrying about their personal routine. He wants the veterans to lead by example, giving the younger players something to observe and follow.

Ross plans on sitting down with Jon Lester and other veterans on the team to discuss ways in which they can foster a more cohesive environment both behind the scenes and on the field. That could mean changing the way players are grouped during drills, altering how the morning meetings and team stretch is conducted and making sure Minor Leaguers are learning from the big league stars.

"Communication is how we develop those relationships," Ross said. "If you put your head down or your headphones on and you're staring at your phone in the locker room because your routine is done that day, and all your work, then you're not affecting the group.

"And we have a lot of great human beings, not just great baseball players, but great dudes, and these dudes need to affect each other, because I know a lot of them in there and how smart they are, how hard they work, what they care about, and I want that to affect everybody."

Ross is confident this can be accomplished naturally, too.

"It's really easy in this game, especially [for] players, they see through the people that are fake," Ross said. "I don't think that will be a problem for me."

In his 20-minute session with reporters, Ross raved about new bench coach Andy Green, who will be in charge of running Spring Training. The manager talked up new bullpen coach Chris Young and raved about the addition of first-base coach and catching coach Craig Driver. Ross said someone like Mike Napoli (the new quality assurance coach) can help impact the culture as a coach and confidant for players.

Ross also said he is planning on contending for a World Series, no matter the moves made by the front office prior to Opening Day.

"My goal is to win," Ross said. "I think the guys, as the roster stands right now, this is a group that is expected to win. I think we've got a chance to win the division and the World Series. There's a lot of talent in this group, and my expectations will never falter from that. I won't ever not expect to win the World Series.