Cubs infield was more good than bad in 2024, but this key position has to improve

Dansby Swanson has to improve his offensive consistency next year

It was a forgettable first half at the plate for Dansby Swanson, who batted just .212 with a sub-.300 OBP prior to the All-Star break. He turned it on down the stretch, including an .856 OPS in the final month of the year - but his lack of offensive contributions when the team was in its free-fall were a major pain point.

Frankly, you just expect more consistency from the guy playing on the second-largest free-agent contract in franchise history. The bigger issue may have stemmed from him attempting to play through an injury at that time, which again raises larger questions about how the Cubs handle IL stints.

Despite the slow start, Swanson once again finished north of 4.0 fWAR. In fact, 2024 was the third-best year of his career by that metric, bested only by his monster 2022 walk-year with the Braves and his strong 2023 campaign with the Cubs. He came here to win - and you can bet he's going to be leaning hard on the front office to assemble a winner this winter.