Could the Chicago Cubs actually win the World Series?

Even before the Chicago Cubs dropped both games of their doubleheader Wednesday against the San Diego Padres, team president Theo Epstein was attempting to temper expectations. "Baseball karma is real," he told reporters earlier this week. "You see some of the stuff written about us in the winter, some of the World Series odds and things like that, [it's a lot] for a team that is a defending third-place team and hasn't done anything yet."

Epstein might be selling his team short, though: The Cubs are off to the best start in baseball this year, and likely the best start most fans have seen in their lifetimes. At 25-8, this is the Cubs' best opening run since 1907, and they hadn't lost two games in a row before their Wednesday matchup against the Padres. The last time a team went so many games to start the season without losing consecutive contests was the Philadelphia Athletics in 1929 — and they won the World Series. Now many believe the Cubs are on the cusp of breaking the championship drought that has plagued them since 1908.

"I am not going to answer any question that mentions the Chicago Cubs and the Golden State Warriors," Epstein told The New York Times, again shaking off the optimism. "It's absurd. We've had a good month. They just set the all-time wins record, and they're working on back-to-back championships. We haven't won [the World Series] in 108 years."

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Epstein is one of the few attempting to keep a level head. "I believe we all think we can make history," Cubs center fielder Dexter Fowler told The Chicago Tribune.

The stats are dizzying: The Cubs could break the major league record for wins in a season by going 92-37, a .713 winning percentage that is actually below their current mark. They're on track to set a major league record for walks, too. Oh, and their starters have gone at least five innings every game this season, and the Cubs have scored twice as many runs as their opponents.

Sure, teams have been known to start hot and flounder later — baseball has a challengingly long season — but even the 1984 Detroit Tigers, who went cold in late spring, ended up winning the World Series.

"We know we need to be in the playoffs, and you've got to be in it to win it," right fielder Jason Heyward said. "We're trying to win every game.”