Chicago Cubs up to their old tricks with Nico Hoerner

It had seemed that Nico Hoerner was on his way to being the Chicago Cubs starting second baseman come Opening Day. After spending the 2020 season in a utility role, he had performed well in spring training, giving the Cubs they could have realistically hoped for.

Instead, Hoerner is heading to AAA to start the season. And once again, this is a matter of manipulating service time.

Chicago Cubs up to their usual tricks

Teams manipulate service time constantly, even in situations where it is plainly obvious. After all, this is the same franchise that made certain that Kris Bryant stayed in the minors for exactly as long as he needed to in order to gain that extra year of control. It should not be a surprise that they have done the same to Hoerner.

It is particularly damning that other evaluators were singing Hoerner’s praises in spring training, saying that he was the best second baseman they had. He had done his part with the bat, producing a .353/.405/.647 batting line in his 37 plate appearances, with three doubles, two triples, a homer, and three steals. Hoerner had drawn three walks while only striking out twice.

However, the one thing that Hoerner could not do was stop his free agency clock from running. After spending most of last season in the majors as a utility option for the Cubs, that extra year of team control won out over having the best possible lineup at the start of the season.

Instead of Hoerner starting the year at second, the Cubs are expected to use a combination of David Bote and Eric Sogard. Bote had signed a six year extension with Chicago, so that obviously moved him to the front of the depth chart. He may eventually be replaced by Hoerner, but that will not happen until he has spent those 36 days in the minors.

The Chicago Cubs are up to their usual tricks with Nico Hoerner as they manipulate his service time. Expect him to be back around the middle of May.