David Ross and Anthony Rizzo’s ‘Lovable Reunion’ podcast promises untold 2016 Cubs stories — but who controls the narrative?

david ross is teaming up with Anthony Rizzo to launch a new podcast, The Lovable Reunion, built to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Chicago Cubs’ 2016 championship—an occasion that invites nostalgia, but also tests who gets to define what the public remembers and what stays off the record.

What is The Lovable Reunion, and why does the “untold stories” pitch matter?

The project is framed as a long-form revisiting of a singular sports moment: the Cubs’ 2016 World Series title that ended a 108-year title drought. The show is titled The Lovable Reunion and is set to debut on March 31 (ET) at The Volume. The concept is direct: Rizzo and david ross will sit down with members of the 2016 team to reminisce, revisit major moments, and surface stories that were not previously seen by the public.

Rizzo described the premise in personal terms, arguing that the season contained material “people never really got to see, ” and positioning the podcast as a way to go “back inside that run. ” Ross emphasized the human architecture behind the title—“personalities, ” “chemistry, ” and “belief”—and said the show gives each participant space to tell “his side of the story, ” including “decisions, ” “emotions, ” and “big moments. ”

Verified fact: The podcast is presented as a vehicle for “untold stories” and individual perspectives from people who “lived it. ”
Informed analysis: Any project built around retrospective memory, especially one marketed on what “never really got to see, ” inherently elevates some recollections over others. Even without scripted framing, the selection of guests, topics, and the comfort level between hosts and former teammates can shape which truths are explored deeply and which remain politely untouched.

David Ross’s media arc: why his role changes the power dynamics of the story

While the show is marketed as a reunion, its hosts are not just former teammates. Their current positions place them at the center of modern sports media and messaging. Rizzo has recently retired from a 14-year major-league career and is now an MLB studio analyst for NBC; he also served as a studio desk analyst for MLB Opening Night on Netflix. Ross, after finishing his playing career with the 2016 title—when the then-39-year-old catcher was commonly called “Grandpa Rossy”—moved into broadcasting as an analyst in 2017, later becoming the Cubs’ manager for the 2020 season after being hired in October 2019. He managed through the 2023 season, before being fired and replaced by Craig Counsell in November 2023. The context also states he served as the Team USA bullpen coach during the 2026 World Baseball Classic, and that he is returning to as an MLB analyst.

This matters because the podcast is not simply two former players reminiscing. It is an editorial product distributed through a sports-media company, hosted by two figures who already operate inside major broadcast ecosystems. That reality can encourage candor—because the hosts understand storytelling and pacing—but it can also encourage discipline, because participants know their words will live permanently and circulate widely.

Verified fact: Ross and Rizzo hold prominent post-playing media roles; Ross also has managerial experience and was fired after the 2023 season.
Informed analysis: A host with managerial experience and deep relationships across the team may draw out sharper detail than a typical interviewer. At the same time, the shared incentives of legacy-building—especially around a revered championship—can subtly pressure conversations toward celebration rather than friction.

Who gets the microphone: the guest list signals the scope—and the limits

The show’s power will rise or fall with who appears and what they feel permitted to say. The stated guest lineup includes prominent figures from the championship season: 2016 Cubs manager Joe Maddon; 2016 NL MVP Kris Bryant; pitchers Jon Lester and Jake Arrieta; and slugger Kyle Schwarber, who returned from a torn ACL suffered that April to star in the World Series.

Those names signal that the podcast aims for breadth: leadership, star talent, and a medical-recovery storyline that already carries emotional weight. The more the show leans into “decisions” and “emotions, ” as Ross described, the more it will need to confront how a team’s internal dynamics are remembered by different participants—especially when each “side of the story” can diverge while still being sincerely held.

Verified fact: Multiple members of the 2016 team are identified as guests, including Maddon, Bryant, Lester, Arrieta, and Schwarber.
Informed analysis: A guest list weighted toward marquee names can widen the audience but may also crowd out less-visible roles. If the show’s mission is truly to capture how “every player had a role, ” as Rizzo argued, the editorial challenge is ensuring that role-players and quieter voices are not treated as scenery for the stars.

The business behind the nostalgia: what The Volume is selling—and why it matters

The Lovable Reunion debuts at The Volume. Matthew Kline, identified as The Volume’s Head of Digital, framed the project as a “full experience built around the personalities and historic moments that fans still talk about today, ” adding that the company is “excited to work with Rizzo and Ross to revisit that championship run” and “hear untold stories. ” The context also identifies The Volume as a company founded by Colin Cowherd.

The stated value proposition is clear: a known sports memory, a proven audience, and charismatic hosts with access to the key characters. The 2016 World Series is described as a thriller with an “unbelievable Game 7” and “massive television ratings, ” and the drought-breaking storyline remains a durable cultural hook. That makes the project more than a nostalgia exercise—it is a professionalized product built to convert memory into ongoing attention.

Verified fact: The show is produced at The Volume; the pitch emphasizes personalities, historic moments, and untold stories; the 2016 series included massive television ratings and an unbelievable Game 7.
Informed analysis: When a historic event becomes a recurring content engine, the risk is that complexity gets streamlined into a canonical version of the story. The public gets easier access to the “glory days, ” but the story may become more settled—and less open to uncomfortable nuance—over time.

david ross and Rizzo are inviting fans “back into that clubhouse” through a format designed for long-form recollection. The promise is intimacy and candor; the contradiction is that the more successful the project becomes as a legacy machine, the more pressure there will be to preserve a feel-good version of history. For a city and fan base still shaped by 2016, The Lovable Reunion will test whether a reunion can be both celebration and real documentation—or whether it becomes another polished monument, with the rough edges filed away.