SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — As he watched the World Series last fall, D. J. LeMahieu did not feel much of anything. Before he won a Gold Glove, started an All-Star Game and captured a batting title as the second baseman for the Colorado Rockies, LeMahieu was a Chicago Cub. He spent three seasons in their farm system and two months in the majors. Yet not a single former teammate, from the minors or the majors, remained.

“Nobody,” LeMahieu said. “Couple of coaches, but that’s about it.”

LeMahieu hit .348 last season, the highest average in the majors since 2010. The Cubs, of course, were the story of the year, winning their first title in more than a century to cap a swift and thorough reconstruction by Theo Epstein, their president for baseball operations.

Epstein acquired several future stars in trades, plucking Jake Arrieta from Baltimore, Kyle Hendricks from Texas, Anthony Rizzo from San Diego and Addison Russell from Oakland. But LeMahieu is the one who got away.