MESA, Ariz. -- The words didn’t exactly roll off of Kris Bryant's tongue, but the sentiment rang loud and clear.

Of the many adages Bryant learned from former Cubs manager Joe Maddon during his time in Chicago, one stood out above the rest.

“Never let the pressure exceed the … wait,” Bryant started to recite. “Never permit the pressure to exceed the pleasure, or something like that. I got the gist of it.”

On Monday, Maddon returned to Cubs camp for first time as the Angels' manager, and his former players honored him the best way they could. They praised him in the morning, hugged him during pregame and then proceeded to treat the matchup against the Angels like just another game once the first pitch was delivered.

The Cubs are moving forward from Maddon, and they are doing so with the lessons learned and memories of the 2016 World Series championship run firmly intact.

“There is a human element to it, and in this game. People say this game is 90% mental -- it’s 99% mental,” Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo said. “ ... He talked to you like a human being. He was so good at being normal in a game that’s so mentally challenging.”

Maddon, who joined the Cubs prior to the 2015 season, became the only manager in franchise history to lead the team to four consecutive postseason berths, amassing 471 regular-season wins during that span.

“Look at what the guy did here,” Bryant said. “In 2014, this was a losing organization. From '15 on, we just win. A lot of it has to do with him and obviously, [chairman] Tom [Ricketts] and [president of baseball operations] Theo [Eptstein] and putting the right people on the field and spending money here and there. But to have someone to lead us the way he did was what we all needed.

“He was the absolute perfect guy for that job at that time. If he wasn’t here, I don’t think we would have been able to [win the World Series.]”

Along the way, Maddon created a loose clubhouse culture that still resonates today.

“I do know this is a game first. It’s not life or death,” Maddon said. “I know that. I was not a bonus baby. The way I came up, and how I came up, I have an appreciation for the struggle. I get it. I know everybody counts and everybody matters, and I have to include everybody every day.”

Maddon’s road back to Sloan Park was a curvy one. The Cubs announced that they would not be offering Maddon a contract extension at the end of September after the two sides agreed that a parting of ways was the best move for both parties. A few weeks later, the Angels hired him. The Cubs hired David Ross, who played under Maddon, just over two weeks later in mid-October.

Maddon brought several coaches from his tenure with the Cubs to the Angels, including third-base coach Brian Butterfield and quality assurance coach Tim Buss. He also added assistant hitting coach John Mallee, who was Chicago’s hitting coach from 2015-17.

“For me and all of the different managers I played for, [Maddon] confirmed a lot of things I believed in how to go about your business and how to treat players,” Ross said. “When he was in Tampa Bay, you are kind of like, ‘What’s this guy all about?’ and you kind of secretly hate him. Then you get to know him, and you love him and how he goes about his business, the freedoms he gives you as a player and a lot of the things you appreciate as a veteran. And the way he treated me, he was a real father-type figure for me.”

Maddon received a nice ovation from the crowd when he stepped on the field at Sloan Park. He went on to hug several of his former players and staff before spending several minutes during pregame chatting with Ross.

“At the end of the day, don’t ever be deceived,” Maddon said. “It’s about the players. I could talk methodology and people can talk about analytics, but it’s about the guys on the field. It’s about baseball players. When you have good baseball players, you have a chance to win. When you don’t, you don’t. We had a bunch of good baseball players.”

Eventually, the managers went to their respective dugouts so the game could begin.

“I think it’s good for both sides to just move on and stop talking about one another,” Bryant said. “I’m sure Joe wants the same thing. He’s in a new organization. He has his way of doing things and that worked for us and got us a World Series. He’s going to continue to be that way. Just move on.”