Dansby Swanson Could Be Key To Cubs’ Success In 2025

The Cubs’ 4-3 win over the Diamondbacks on Saturday was sealed by an impressively heads-up defensive play by shortstop Dansby Swanson. Thanks to a two-run homer by Eugenio Suarez earlier in the inning, the Diamondbacks were threatening to erase the Cubs’ lead, but Swanson capitalized on a poor baserunning decision by Garrett Hampson to end the game.

Swanson signed a seven year, $177 million contract with the Cubs in December 2022, and his play for the Cubs during his first two years of that deal had fans in Chicago wondering whether their team had made a mistake. Swanson batted .243 with a .723 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) in those first two years, a notable drop from the kinds of numbers he had posted with the Braves from 2016-2022. In those same two seasons, the Cubs fell short of expectations, putting up back-to-back 83 win seasons and failing to reach the playoffs.

The play Swanson made on Saturday is a microcosm of the kind of thing the Cubs need from him. It showcased his defensive prowess on the surface, but looking deeper, it was an example of the kind of mental and emotional play on the granular level that Swanson can lead the team with. There is an edge to that kind play that the Cubs seem to have been missing for a few seasons now.

Swanson is a veteran at 31 and in his tenth season in the majors, and now that he is in his third year with the Cubs, he needs to be one of the leaders in his clubhouse and on the field. Swanson drew a lot of praise from the Cubs for how he carried himself in 2023 despite struggling on the field. Those struggles carried into the first half of 2024, so much so that Swanson got a few days off in July of that year for a reset.

That reset seemed to have helped; Swanson went from a .632 OPS in the first half of 2024 to .795 in the second half. Now that the 2025 season is underway, the Cubs need that kind of production from Swanson in order to be successful.

Though one defensive play in an early-season game does not by itself mean that Swanson is going to play with the right kind of swagger all season, it is a good step in that direction. Those kinds of moments have a way of building on each other as a season goes on, and they can also galvanize an entire team.

The moment against the Diamondbacks drew praise from his teammates and opponents, and unlike his 2023 campaign, Swanson is being praised for more than just carrying himself well through struggles.

“It was those three words that I’ve used: experienced, instinctual, athletic,” manager Craig Counsell told reporters Saturday. “It was the definition of those three things. It was just a brilliant play. It’s a play that, in real time, you just think about it — he’s thinking about that play before he catches the ball. In that time from when it’s hit to when he catches it — which was what, a second? – that’s what’s running through his mind.

“That’s just great instincts, man. It’s incredible. He took a good angle on it and got a really athletic guy and made a great tag.”

In a season when the Cubs have a need to prove themselves, Swanson might prove to be one of their greatest catalysts if things do go well. They have many of the other necessary pieces to make a division winner, and a successful season from Kyle Tucker could be as crucial to the Cubs winning their first National League Central division title since 2017. But Tucker is essentially with the Cubs on a one-year deal; they traded for him in December knowing that his plans are to test the free agent market this offseason, and his price tag is bound to be hefty.

Although the Cubs can certainly benefit from Tucker having a good year this season – again, he might be just as important to reaching the postseason for the first time since the Cubs’ 2020 wild card appearance – Swanson has the potential to be the lifeblood of the team, and with several more years left on his contract, he is a major part of not only the Cubs’ 2025 success, but also a significant piece of their long-term hopes.

And attitudes toward Swanson might be shifting, at least internally. Center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong made an equally impressive defensive play on Saturday night, and when he was asked about Swanson’s, he said it is the kind of thing the team just expects from him.

“It’s not that surprising,” Crow-Armstrong told reporters. “He makes a lot of those types of plays. He’s a very smart person and player.”