Season Report Card: Nico Hoerner leads the way at second base

Matt Marton - USA Today Sports

Dustin Riese · Senior Writer · 3 hours ago

As we continue to move across the diamond with our Season Report card series, we have reached the strength of this team: one-half of the middle infield. Make no mistake about it, the middle of the Cubs' infield is about as good as anyone when it comes to the defensive side, as both Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson make things look easy.

There is a reason why Swanson has won multiple Gold Glove awards and continues to be a finalist for that award, while Hoerner will also rank near the top in overall fielding percentage. If it wasn't for them, the success that some of the Cubs pitchers had wouldn't be possible, as these two help take away plenty of runs.

Today, we will grade out the second base position for the Cubs, as this was a question going into the season, but is no longer one. In fact, Hoerner was the Cubs' MVP this past season, doing just about everything on the diamond on both sides of the ball.

Nico Hoerner

Heading into the 2025 season, there were a lot of question marks surrounding Hoerner, with the biggest one coming from the outside as he was mentioned as a possible trade candidate to improve the roster. In hindsight, you get the sense as to why the Cubs would consider trading Hoerner, as he brings a ton of value to the table.

The other question dealt with his health and whether he would be the same player he was before undergoing offseason forearm surgery. Even though he missed the opening series in Japan, Hoerner proved he was not only healthy but also put together the best season of his career. The Cubs are happy they decided to hang on to him, as he will be a significant part of their success next season.

When you talk about the type of hitter the Cubs need in their lineup, Hoerner is the name that comes to mind, as he flirted with Trea Turner for the National League batting title only to come up just short. He still managed to hit .297 for the season, which was by far his career high. Along with the average, he added 29 doubles, 29 stolen bases, seven homers, and 61 RBIs.

He did all that while hitting a major league best with runners in scoring position, as he was the team's most clutch hitter this season. He became so clutch that Craig Counsell moved him around the roster a ton during the second half to try to get his bat up in clutch spots, but it does appear that the No. 2 hole will be his moving forward.

Grade A+: This was by far the easiest grade to give out on this team, as Hoerner deserves every bit of this grade. He is a gamer who plays the game the right way, exactly what this league is missing in how the game is played nowadays.

If the Cubs had four more players with his skill set, they would likely win 100 or more games every season, as he provides plenty of value with the bat and even more value with the glove. Look for him to take on a more prominent leadership role in 2026, as he is one of the faces of this franchise.

Jon Berti

When the Cubs signed the 35-year-old Berti to a one-year, two-million-dollar deal, it made plenty of sense at the time. Berti is not only a veteran clubhouse presence but also the perfect utility player to put on your bench, as he can play any of the four infield spots. He also runs fast, making him the perfect late-game pinch runner.

Throughout the first month of the season, you started to see some of that value from Berti as he came away with several big stolen bases in key spots, while also displaying the ability to come through as a pinch hitter. What he didn't do well was defend, as he spent more time at third than he had expected, which ultimately cost him all his playing time.

For the season, Berti appeared in 53 games, accumulating only 12 hits, which resulted in a .210 average. He did add 11 stolen bases on 14 tries, as that was the biggest asset of his game and became the Cubs' saving grace in relief in blowout games, as he posted several pitching performances on the mound.

Grade D-:< Every year, teams make moves that look good on paper only to have them not work out in the end. This is one of those moves by the Cubs: the initial move made a ton of sense for roster depth, but it never panned out the way either party wanted.

Berti had his chances early in the season, and a lot of that was due to Matt Shaw's injury. Had he been more consistent, especially on the defensive side, there is a high likelihood that he may have lasted longer on this team, as his speed off the bench was something the Cubs could've used in the postseason.