The Chicago Cubs enter the season with plenty of hype, but one star player made an intriguing change.
The Milwaukee Brewers eliminated the Cubs in the NLDS last season, and the Cubs enter the year looking for revenge. Yet, in spring training, star shortstop Dansby Swanson made a complete change in the batting cage and weight room, which manager Craig Counsell said is scary.
“When you’ve had a lot of success in the league, changing up your training is scary a little bit,” Counsell said. “It just is. It seems like you have to, but it’s harder to do. I think it’s an acknowledgement that growth never stops and learning never stops.”
Swanson, meanwhile, felt like the changes were necessary as he knows as he gets older he has to make some changes to stay atop of his game.
“I feel like I’m in a really good place,” Swanson said. “I feel like that’s the cliche of everyone after every offseason, but there’s just something that felt different about this one — and I’m not talking daughter-related. Just personally and career-wise, just some things started clicking a little differently than they have in years past.”
Swanson hit .244 with 24 home runs and 77 RBIs last season with the Cubs. In the playoffs, he hit .154 with zero home runs and 1 RBI as he struggled in October.
Swanson Knows he Can be Better
Although Swanson has been an impact player in the MLB for years, he knows he has to improve on last season.
The star shortstop wasn’t happy with his performance in the playoffs, which put a bad taste in his mouth entering the offseason. So, he felt like he needed to make changes this offseason.
“I feel like I just haven’t been what I’ve wanted to be over the last few years,” Swanson said. “And I felt like the best thing I could do is just kind of intentionally change things, whether it was how I was training or things I was doing in the cage. Things like that. Just really ultimately doing things to push myself to get better.”
The Cubs star said he feels good with where his game is at. And, he knows the team has what it takes to win the World Series.
Chicago Coach Praises Swanson
As Cubs camp has begun, Chicago hitting coach Dustin Kelly is already impressed with Swanson.
Kellly knows Swanson put in a ton of work this offseason, and he expects that to translate to harder hit balls and more home runs.
“He hits the ball hard. It’s, ‘How are we maximizing that?’” Kelly said. “He’s going to hit homers. … There’s more meat on the bone when it comes to overall contact quality, so it’s, ‘How do we get you to a spot where you’re putting the ball in play in certain situations and allowing your natural ability and how hard you hit the ball [to take over]?’”
Swanson’s career high in home runs is 27, which he did in 2021. But perhaps the star shortstop can break that in 2026 with the Cubs.
Cubs Star Dansby Swanson Reveals ‘Scary’ Change he Made This Offseason