CHICAGO -- Imagine standing out in 43-degree weather for 30 minutes. Imagine waiting for some action on the field as three batters walk and another is hit by a pitch. Now imagine it’s the first inning when all this goes on.

It’s what the Cincinnati Reds dealt with behind their starter, Alfredo Simon, as he threw 49 pitches in the opening inning against the Chicago Cubs in the latter team’s eventual 9-2 win Wednesday night. Forty-nine pitches and he didn’t even last long enough to record three outs. The Cubs have established themselves as a relentless offensive team, and it took all of 10 days to establish that identity.

“What can I say, man?” Cubs manager Joe Maddon asked rhetorically after the win. “We’ve been talking about it the whole beginning of the season. Talked about it a lot in spring training. And they’re doing it. I really believe that we’re capable of maintaining that kind of an approach.”

If they can maintain it the Cubs might set some records for length of innings and games, pitches seen and free passes. Already this season they’ve forced two hurlers to throw 40-plus pitches at them in one inning.

“I didn’t even know that until you brought it up,” outfielder Jason Heyward said. “It says something about what we’re trying to do, which is not too much. Keep it simple. If we hit a homer, we hit a homer. If we don’t, we deal with whatever we get out of it.”

Usually what they’ve been getting are those free passes. The Cubs have walked 48 times in their first eight games, including 10 times on Wednesday. The eight-game total is the most in that timeframe since 1974 when they walked 50 times, according to ESPN Stats & Information research. But that’s just the beginning.

As a team the Cubs are walking in 14.5 percent of their plate appearances. Last season only seven qualified players walked that often.

They’re seeing 3.92 pitches per plate appearance, which is actually less than what they saw last year (3.98).

Simon’s 49 pitches were the most by a pitcher in one inning this season. Garret Richards threw 41 against the Cubs on Opening Night last week.

Jorge Soler (left) is one of the many young Cubs who have been embracing the team's patient approach at the plate. David Banks/Getty Images

We could go on from there. It's early in the season, so you can never be too sure if the trends will continue, but it would be foolish to think the Cubs are simply going to go backward now. They have an identity. Sometimes it won’t be the most entertaining process to watch, but when those runs cross the plate no one sitting in cold temperatures or watching at home is going to complain.

“I really believe we’ll be ready to play every night,” Maddon said. “It was a big push during camp. When you get the buy-in from the entire group it makes all the difference in the world.”

The “buy-in” began last season, but adding Heyward and Ben Zobrist hastened the effort to become what this front office created in Boston, a methodical, withering offense which should eventually get pitchers to throw the ball over the plate. Kris Bryant got one on Wednesday which he deposited in the left field stands for his first home run of the season.

“It’s always good to get the first one out of the way,” Bryant said. “We made him [Simon] work really hard in the first inning. Anytime you do that you set yourself up for a good day.”

And if you don’t think this kind of play is contagious then you haven’t been watching left fielder Jorge Soler. He sees what’s going on around him, and an observant Maddon thinks Soler is figuring some things out after he went 2-for-2 with a walk on Wednesday -- all without wearing his signature ski mask of a year ago. He might be cold, but he’s not showing it.

“Here’s another guy I’m watching,” Maddon said. “I’m watching him before the game and on the bench. When you do the fly-by talk-to, he’s getting there. His focus is improving. He needs to understand the mental side of this thing. I give him credit. He’s working hard at it.”

Maybe what best illustrates Soler’s improvement is what he has done in situational moments, like with a man on third and less than two outs. Last season he brought home the run a dismal 36 percent of the time, well below the league average of about 50 percent. So far this year he’s 3-for-3, including a sacrifice fly in the elongated first inning.

“It says something about what we’re trying to do,” Heyward said of the entire strategy. “Take what they give us. Don’t get antsy, don’t get greedy.”

It’s working to perfection for the 7-1 Cubs. As for those long, cold innings, as long as the opposition is experiencing them no one is complaining, not even starting pitchers who might tighten up on the cold bench.

“You’re not going to hear me complaining about hanging around and watching guys score runs,” said Wednesday’s winner, John Lackey.

Heyward added: “There’s something to be said for keeping a defense on the field for a long time. I feel like we’ve done a good job of that.”

And there’s seemingly no end in sight to it.