![]() ![]() As you can see, Nico’s value was driven by glove-side outs, such as these highlights: These represent Hoerner’s well-above average defense on batted balls hit to the respective location. Notice the dark red boxes spread throughout the infield. The left panel illustrates Hoerner’s defensive value from 2021-2022, seasons in which he split between shortstop and second base. To help visualize both Hoerner and Swanson’s defensive value, see the figure below. ![]() ![]() A middle-of-the-infield player, you can’t hide in the shift anymore, so I think that’s going to expose those guys even more, and it makes athleticism and defense in the middle of the infield that much more important.” I think it’s really important to have really good defense up the middle. “Being strong up the middle really helps, especially with the new rules. “There are certain baseball truisms that I think are true,” president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said. It’s that combination of middle infielders that makes the defensive potential in 2023 - when the banning of the shift becomes a thing - so intriguing. Hoerner was asked multiple times during the season what he thought of the Cubs adding a shortstop in free agency and forcing him into a new spot on the field, and every single time, he answered with something like, “I’ll play wherever they tell me to play.” As much as Hoerner impressed in his first full season as the primary shortstop, he was a Gold Glove finalist at second base in 2020 and would surely be a perennial candidate now that he’s nearing his prime. To start, with Swanson in the fold, Nico Hoerner is pretty much guaranteed to move over to second base. The fit, as it turns out, is a pretty good one. For now, all we can do is examine how a player coming off a 6.4 WAR season (per FanGraphs) fits on a Cubs roster not much different from the one that finished 2022 with a 74-88 record. In a sense, it may feel like the Cubs are paying a premium (average annual value a bit over $25 million) for a player coming off a mid-career breakout season without 100 percent confidence that success will continue over the long haul.īut that’s a discussion for a later time, when we have a clear picture of how Swanson lived up to his contract (which may be an easier task for him, considering the other three shortstops got deals worth at least $280 million over no fewer than 11 years). He’s graded out well defensively for most of his seven-year career but only just earned his first Gold Glove. The deal may seem a bit steep for a shortstop who turns 29 in less than two months and only just made his first All-Star team. Dansby Swanson, one of the “Big Four” shortstops who hit the free agent market this offseason, is headed to Chicago after reportedly agreeing Saturday afternoon to a seven-year deal worth $177 million. The Cubs didn’t waste any more time to go and get their man. ![]()
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