Cubs spring training numbers from a year ago send an important - and needed - message

Must we repeat this exercise every spring? Back-to-back clunkers from Shota Imanaga and Jameson Taillon have way too many Cubs fans pulling their hair out and I really don't understand why.

Say it with me: spring training numbers do not matter. Period. Full stop.

Do I care that Taillon has a 19.50 ERA in three Cactus League starts? Or that Imanaga allowed three home runs his last time out? Not in the slightest. And some numbers from last spring can tell you why I'm not sweating some early spring struggles.

Matthew Boyd struggled - and then went on to have the best year of his career, making the NL All-Star team and anchoring a staff that limped into October running on fumes. A 3.21 ERA in just under 180 regular-season innings? Yeah, that'll play. Taillon, for what it's worth, was a dependable cog, as well, making 23 starts in an injury-shortened campaign.

Colin Rea, the real unsung hero of the 2025 Cubs' staff, was a godsend all year long, filling in for the injured Justin Steele, throwing more innings than anyone on the team apart from Boyd, and really stepping up in an underappreciated way.

Meanwhile, Eli Morgan, Jordan Wicks and Julian Merryweather - three pitchers who threw the ball well last spring - were complete non-factors for the Cubs come the regular season.

Want more proof? Remember last spring when Gage Workman looked like an All-Star, dominating Cactus League pitching to the tune of a .364/.420/.705 in 20 contests? Yeah, how did that wind up playing out come Opening Day? He batted just .214/.267/.286 with the Cubs before the team dumped him in late April.

Can strong (or poor) performances in spring training carry into the regular season? Absolutely. But it's far from a guarantee, good or bad, and it's time we all come to terms with that fact and stop overreacting every spring.