4 Cubs who drastically exceeded expectations in 2024

The fact that Jed Hoyer's two biggest offseason additions from a year ago will appear on this list and the Chicago Cubs still missed the postseason, going 83-79 and finishing 10 games behind Milwaukee in the division, says a lot about the state of this roster heading into the winter.

The takeaway from Jed Hoyer's end-of-season presser is that the team will continue to hope for players to outperform projections next year, a questionable strategy, to say the least. But several players did just that in 2024, turning heads in the best of ways.

Here are 4 Cubs players who drastically exceeded expectations this season.

1. Shota Imanaga looks like the free-agent steal of last winter after a stellar rookie campaign

Last winter, it was all eyes on Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Ohtani, who was finally set to escape the doldrums of the Angels organization, had his eyes set on a record-setting contract. Yamamoto, a 25-year-old hurler from Japan, was hyped as the best pitcher to come out of the NPB in years.

Both wound up signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers, with the two contracts totaling a staggering $1.025 billion. That's a level the Cubs have never - and likely will never - play at, but they somewhat quietly locked up the second-best pitcher making the jump from Japan, Shota Imanaga, a move that now looks like a stroke of genius.

Imanaga, who will receive down-ballot support for NL Rookie of the Year, won 15 games, pitching to a 2.91 ERA in 173 1/3 innings. He led the league with a 6.21 strikeout-to-walk ratio and earned an All-Star selection in his first big-league campaign. Frankly, he kept this team afloat all year long - with the Cubs going 23-6 in his starts. Without him, a season that ended in disappointment could have been far, far worse.