Nico Hoerner’s stellar week, part of a scorching start to the season for the Chicago Cubs’ second baseman, has earned him an MLB honor.
Hoerned was named National League player of the week on Monday for the first time in his career. Over the last week, Hoerner hit .346 with two home runs, 11 RBIs, one walk, four runs scored, two stolen bases, a .577 slugging percentage and a .357 on-base percentage. His 10 RBIs in a three-game span made him the first Cub since 1898 to accomplish that feat while hitting leadoff.
“He had a great week, hence the honor, but he’s played at a really high level and he’s doing a lot for us right now offensively for sure,” manager Craig Counsell said. “He’s been a big part of just getting things started, finishing things off. He’s been in the middle of a lot of things. So off to a great start, and well deserving of the honor.”
Hoerner has thrived with runners on base. His 20 RBIs are second-most in the majors with runners on among the 223 qualified hitters, while Hoerner’s 207 wRC+ in those situations ranks 13th. The success of the Cubs’ Nos. 7-9 spots in the order has given Hoerner ample chances at the top to be a run producer. The Cubs’ seven-through-nine hitters this year own a combined .341 OBP, tied with the Atlanta Braves for third-best in MLB, trailing only the Los Angeles Dodgers (.384) and Toronto Blue Jays (.344).
Dansby Swanson’s improved walk rate — currently at 17.4%, up from 7.3% in 2025 — to begin the year has also helped set up Hoerner for run-scoring plate appearances.
“He’s capitalized on a lot of the opportunities, too,” Counsell said of Hoerner. “That’s been a big part of it as well. You’ve got one at-bat where it’s just you that you can drive in.”
Right-hander Jacob Webb hadn’t experienced much exposure to being an inning-plus reliever before last season.
Twenty-six of Webb’s 55 appearances with the Texas Rangers featured him recording at least four outs or pitching into a second inning. Webb had to learn how to handle adjusting to coming back out for another frame, something he hadn’t been great at in limited chances prior to 2025. He found that if he didn’t sit down in the dugout between innings, instead standing or pacing back and forth, he was able to stay locked in mentally.
“Honestly, I feel like that developed me even more as a reliever, not just being a single-inning guy, being able to go out even for two, maybe even three innings just depending on what they need that day,” Webb told the Tribune on Monday. “The biggest thing is I try to pride myself on being available as much as possible and just understanding the situation really.”
The Cubs came into the season expecting to use Webb as a multi-inning option.
“The makeup of the bullpen has changed pretty quickly, and so that has kind of altered plans right away,” Counsell said. “But I think as this thing hopefully normalizes a little bit, Jacob will be somebody that maybe finishes an inning or picks up two innings in some chunks here.”
Webb has looked more locked in over the last 10 days. The key: zero walks in his five appearances during that span. Getting a better feel for his changeup has produced better results, too, as he continues to get a better feel for the sweeper he’s been working on.
“Now I can rely on my changeup again and gaining the confidence back with that,” Webb said. “The biggest thing was obviously walking too many people. That’s usually not who I am, so it was a little frustrating at the beginning, but I think my stuff is definitely trending forward.”
The laceration on reliever Ethan Roberts’ right middle finger continues to progress in the right direction.
Roberts has already thrown one bullpen without issue and was scheduled to play catch Monday, followed by another bullpen Tuesday. Counsell expects Roberts’ finger to be a non-issue by the end of the week. Roberts told the Tribune he expects to pitch in a rehab game Friday. He is eligible to come off the injured list on April 28 in San Diego. Given the cut on his finger, MLB has approved Roberts to use Dermabond adhesive on the area of his cut while pitching for one month.
This week marks an important step for reliever Hunter Harvey (right triceps inflammation). Harvey has not thrown since his triceps issue sidelined him since April 9, but Counsell called this “a fairly big week” for the right-hander. The hope is Harvey, who has not even used plyo balls or thrown a football while being shut down, can get back into throwing sometime mid-week.
The Cubs are still gathering information on closer Daniel Palencia’s left oblique strain. They are continuing to treat the injury, but before the Cubs depart for their West Coast trip Thursday night, Counsell said they must figure out if Palencia is making progress. If not, the next steps will be determined.