Swanson, Hoerner, Happ bring home Gold Glove hardware?

CHICAGO -- When the Cubs added shortstop Dansby Swanson via free agency an offseason ago, part of the idea was to create arguably the best defensive middle-infield duo in baseball. Swanson and second baseman Nico Hoerner did not disappoint, providing elite glovework all season.

On Sunday night, Swanson and Hoerner were rewarded for their defensive prowess, joining left fielder Ian Happ as recipients of a Rawlings Gold Glove Award. Swanson and Hoerner became the first middle-infield duo in the Cubs’ long, storied history to win Gold Gloves in the same season.

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“From the beginning of the year, it was something that was pretty well-covered,” Hoerner said on Sunday night. “As a team, we were going to be really valuing run prevention. Whether we got the awards or not, I felt that our team really did that beyond the three of us. So to get recognition, it feels great, especially with that goal in mind.”

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Hoerner added that the “long-term perspective” adds to the excitement of winning the award -- all three of the Cubs’ Gold Glove winners are under contract through at least the 2026 season. And by each taking home hardware for their defensive efforts this past season, they accomplished a few historic feats for the franchise:

• Swanson joined Javier Báez (2020), Don Kessinger (1969-70) and Ernie Banks (1960) as the only shortstops to win a Gold Glove Award for the Cubs. It is the second Gold Glove in a row for Swanson, who picked up his first in ‘22 with the Braves.
• Hoerner (a first-time Gold Glover) joined Darwin Barney (2012), Ryne Sandberg (1983-91), Glenn Beckert (1968) and Ken Hubbs (1962) as the only second basemen to win a Gold Glove for the Cubs.
• Happ, who also won a Gold Glove in left field in ‘22, joined right fielders Jason Heyward (2016-17) and Andre Dawson (1987-88), as well as center fielder Bob Dernier (1984), as the only outfielders to win the award in Cubs history.

This marks the 13th time in Cubs history that the ballclub had multiple Gold Glove winners in the same year, but Swanson, Hoerner and Happ represent the first trio of recipients in the same season for the North Siders.

“It’s really cool any time you can be a part of Cubs history like that,” Happ said. “The first to do something is pretty special. This organization’s been around a long time. There’s a lot of credit to a lot of the other guys around the field every day playing with us, but it’s cool to be the ones that are part of that.”

Swanson and Hoerner became just the 13th middle-infield duo in MLB history to win Gold Gloves in the same year. They joined Gene Alley and Bill Mazeroski (1966-67 Pirates), Dave Concepcion and Joe Morgan (1974-77 Reds), Edgar Renteria and Fernando Vina (2012 Cardinals), and Brandon Crawford and Joe Panik (2016 Giants) as the only double-play partners to win the award in the same year in the National League.

“It’s like this ever-evolving thing,” Swanson said of forming a strong middle-infield tandem. “It’s not just as simple as, ‘Oh, we just became good.’ The individual stuff happened, yeah. We worked out butts off to be good in that regard. But the camaderie and the chemistry takes time, and it will only continue to get better as time goes along.”

Swanson led all qualified Major League fielders in Statcast’s outs above average (20) and all shortstops in defensive runs saved (18) in his first tour with the Cubs, who inked him to a seven-year, $177 million pact last winter. Over at second base, Hoerner had 13 OAA and 12 DRS.

Happ led all MLB left fielders with 12 assists. That included throwing runners out at home in the 10th and 11th innings of a wild, 7-6, win over the Brewers on July 4 in Milwaukee. He was the first player with two outfield assists in extra innings of the same game since June 4, 2006 (Endy Chavez of the Mets), per ESPN Stats & Info.

“It’s just super, super special,” Happ said. “To win the first one was really awesome, but to be able to back it up with another one and have that on the resume, I think that’s a really special thing. To be able to do it in Wrigley again and twice in a Cubs uniform is a pretty cool thing that I’ll cherish.”