The Cubs came into the season with sky-high expectations after winning 97 games last season and making a flurry of offseason moves that included adding John Lackey, Jason Heyward, Ben Zobrist and re-signing Dexter Fowler.The North Siders have managed to live up to the hype early, jumping out to a 7-1 start, good for the best record in baseball along with the Orioles. How have they done it? Here are just a few reasons.MORE: Rizzo on MVP track| Ben Zobrist Jersey Cubs will be the team people love to hateKeep on walkingThe Cubs have walked 48 times, the most in baseball. They have drawn 10 walks twice through eight games as a point of comparison, a team drew 10 walks or more just 16 times during the entire 2015 season, according to Baseball-Reference. If you want to play the on pace for game, the Cubs are on pace to walk 972 times. The major-league record is 835, by the 1949 Red Sox.The Cubs are swinging at just 23.6 percent of pitches outside the zone, the third-lowest percentage in baseball.But more importantly, are the walks leading to runs? Of the 10 batters who walked in Wednesday nights 9-2 win over Cincinnati, four came around to score. Overall, 17 runners Cubs who have walked this season have come around to score that is, more than one-third.Seeing pitchesThe Cubs forced Reds starter Alfredo Simon out of Wednesdays game after Addison Russell Jersey he threw 49 pitches and couldnt get out of the first inning. The Cubs have made a habit out of seeing an insane number of pitches. Here are the number of pitches the Cubs have seen per game:The Cubs are seeing an average of 172 pitches per game, or nearly 20 pitches per inning.Seeing pitches does a number of things: one, it gives hitters a better idea of what they might see in future at-bats, and more importantly, it forces opposing managers to go into their often precarious long relief. This can wreak havoc on a team over the course of a series, with each game impacting the next and sometimes, even the next few games.Efficient pitchingOn the flipside, the Cubs have managed to be extremely economical with their Kyle Schwarber Cool Base White Jersey pitching staff early on. The Cubs have thrown an average of 124 pitches per game, or just shy of 14 pitches per inning.This has allowed starters to go deep into games starters are averaging nearly 7 innings per start and have a 3.10 ERA. Starters are fanning just 21.3 percent of battersand are walking 5.5 percent of batters the fewest in baseball. This is a recipe for low pitch counts and long outings.Dominant bullpenThe Cubs bullpen with the exception of one blip on the radar, a late-game meltdown in Arizona that led to the teams only lo s has been stellar in nearly every facet of the game.The pen has allowed just eight hits in 19.1 innings, and two earned runs, the fewest in baseball. It has walked just two (the fewest in the game), and 50 percent of the balls hit have been on the ground.MORE: Best MLB player at every age| MLB fan misery indexCloser Hector Rondon, who saved a career-high 30 games in 2015, has appeared in three games, hasnt allowed a base runner and has struck out seven of the nine batters he has faced.#anybodyanytimeCatcher Miguel Montero, who came to the Cubs before the 2015 season, created a social media sensation when he tweeted #wearegood after an early season win. Cubs fans everywhere soon coined #wearegood as their catchphrase. Because, for the first time in a long time, they were.Woow nice win omg #wearegood miguel montero (@miggymont26) April 18, 2015Montero was at it again Wednesday night, when Andre Dawson Jersey he tweeted #anybodyanytime. And that mantra anybody, anytime, for those who arent versed in deciphering hashtags, might be the most apropos statement about this Cubs team.That's the beauty of the @cubs #anybodyanytime miguel montero (@miggymont26) April 14, 2016Consider this: Kris Bryant, the reigning NL Rookie of the Year, has just one home run and is hitting .212. Anthony Rizzo is hitting .207. Jason Heyward? .250. Kyle Schwarber? Out for the season.And yetthe Cubs are scoring 7 runs per game, the most in baseball,and have a +36 run differential.Its because of guys like Dexter Fowler, who is hitting .423 and getting on base at a .523 clip. Its guys like Ben Zobrist, who is hitting .290, has walked seven times and has scored seven runs. Montero himself is 6-for-21 and has driven in six. Tommy La Stella has made the most of limited playing time, knocking four hits in eight at-bats.It really is anybody, anytime.Defense winsThe Cubs have made just two errors in eight games, tied for the fewest in baseball. The Cubs were good defensively last season, committing the sixth-fewest errors in baseball. The additions of Zobrist and Heyward along with a season full of Addison Ru sell at shortstop (rather than the error-prone Starlin Castro, who committed 18 errors at short in 2015) should make Joe Maddon Jersey that good defense one of the best in baseball this season.