DENVER – The Cubs are trying to rebuild their roster after moving a third of their Opening Day roster over the last two weeks. With an eye now on 2022, the focus has shifted to who will be part of that future.
Second baseman Nico Hoerner and newly acquired second baseman Nick Madrigal are two reasons why the Cubs are optimistic about that future.
Hoerner, who is currently on the 10-day injured list with a right oblique strain, had established himself as the Cubs’ best option at second base when healthy.
But with Madrigal coming over from the White Sox with a unique skill set that the Cubs haven’t had a lot of over the years, the Cubs have already begun to envision what the two of them could do together.
“I texted him,” Hoerner said before Thursday’s game. “Obviously wish we were both healthy and playing up the middle together right now, but just a great competitor.”
Hoerner and Madrigal haven’t gotten to play together in the big leagues, but they already have some chemistry together from knowing each other over the years. Growing up about an hour away from each other, Hoerner and Madrigal played together for Team USA as teens.
The two then played against each other for three seasons in college while Hoerner was at Stanford and Madrigal was at Oregon State. Both were drafted in the first round of the 2018 MLB Draft with Madrigal being selected fifth overall by the White Sox and Hoerner being taken by the Cubs as the 24th overall pick.
“He’s someone I’ve definitely played against more than I played with. We did grow up playing together and our careers have been kind of parallel,” Hoerner said. “Someone I have a ton of respect for and excited to honestly just spend more time with because we’ve always been playing against each other. Very cool.”
When Hoerner has been healthy, he’s been one of the best defensive second baseman in the National League with the metrics to back it up. Because Madrigal doesn’t have the versatility that Hoerner does, he’ll likely go back to moving around the diamond, seeing time at shortstop and possibly center field where the Cubs liked his athleticism.
“There’s a strong group of players in the big leagues right now that are everyday players and we’re All-Stars that play multiple positions,” Hoerner said. “So there’s definitely no shame in that. If anything, it’s exciting. It’s been fun honing in on second base, like I have in the last year or two, but I still really believe in my ability to play shortstop and other places too.”
But what the Cubs are most excited about is how both players’ offensive profiles help change what they’ve been as a team offense for the last several seasons. Being able to have multiple players who can put the ball in play surrounded by power could change what the team has shown since 2017. Madrigal was slashing .305/.349/.425 with 10 doubles, four triples and two home runs in 54 games before undergoing surgery in June to repair proximal tendon tears in his right hamstring.
“When you talk contact, he’s a whole ‘nother level of contact hitter,” Hoerner said. When you actually dive into it, he’s like the best, right? There’s no one that puts that bat on the ball as well as him.”
“The contact stuff is evident,” manager David Ross said. “When you’ve got two guys that really don’t strike out, move the baseball and you surround those types of guys with some real thunder in their bat. You get guys like that on base and not strikeout, it makes it hard on the other team.”
