Well, look who suddenly are hotter than a stolen tamale — the Cubs, winners of five straight games and seven of their last eight heading into Sunday’s series finale against the Orioles at Wrigley Field.

It’s enough to make one wonder if, after all, oft-criticized manager David Ross isn’t, well, it’s hard to know exactly the right way to put it.

“An idiot?” Ross offered.

Harsh, but sure. After all the dumping on him that fans have done during this still-under-.500 Cubs season, he might as well go ahead and pick the word.

“I don’t put a whole lot of stock in the fan stuff,” Ross said. “They expect wins, and they deserve that. Trying to do that is what we grind on every day — and you lose sleep as a manager — but, at the end of the day, I’m trying to do right by the guys on this field, this organization, my bosses, my coaching staff, these players. They give me everything they’ve got pretty consistently, and that’s all the feedback I need.”

A Cubs player who eagerly went to bat for Ross is the one who has been around him the longest, pitcher Kyle Hendricks. “The Professor” used a ten-dollar word — “catastrophize” — to describe the social-media slams of his 2016 World Series teammate as the team went 14-29 from April 22 to June 8.

“It’s totally unfair,” Hendricks said. “That’s for someone who isn’t in here on an everyday basis. We’re doing everything possible. We’re so close to where we need to be. Rossy is an unbelievable person, an unbelievable baseball mind and manager, and everyone in here — me, especially — loves that he’s here.”

Hendricks scoffed at the idea that Ross, who was lauded for his smarts as a catcher, is out of his element in his current role, habitually pressing the wrong buttons with his lineups and bullpen decisions.

Photo by Scott Kane/Getty Images

“I can tell you one thing, it’s not brought up at all between these walls,” Hendricks said. “It’s not talked about at all, ever. He’s our leader. He’s our guy. We’ve seen it since day one. He has your back; he’s behind you. It’s a tough game, and he’s not the one out there playing. It’s the players who either win or lose the game. He can only do so much.”

Apprised of the veteran pitcher’s sentiment, Ross warmed over.

“Man, you know me and how I feel about other men sharing their feelings about guys they compete with,” he said. “That tugs on my heartstrings for sure, because you always feel like you’re doing the best you can even though the only reward or only real feedback you get is ‘Ws’ in this game. So for, one, a friend, and somebody I respect a whole lot to say those nice things, that means a lot.”