Two Cubs Stars Named Best At Their Positions When It Comes To This One Thing

It feels like the Chicago Cubs are starting to put the rough stretch they had following the trade deadline behind them, as they are coming off a sweep of the Los Angeles Angels and have won eight out of their last 10 games.

This now has them sitting with a 76-55 record entering play on Tuesday, a mark that has them tied for the second-best record in the National League and the fourth-best in all of Major League Baseball. Much of the success this year can be attributed to the explosive offense that has been on display, with Kyle Tucker providing a huge boost alongside the breakout of Pete Crow-Armstrong and career season of Seiya Suzuki.

However, what the Cubs have always done well is play elite defense, and that has not changed this season with multiple players across their roster making highlight plays on what feels like an everyday basis. But two of the players stand out above the rest, with Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report naming two players the best defenders at their positions.

Nico Hoerner, Pete Crow-Armstrong Named Best Defenders

Nico Hoerner and Pete Crow-Armstrong — Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Nico Hoerner already has a Gold Glove to his name, so it's not surprising to see him be viewed in this light. But what he's done at second base this year has been downright impressive, with him on pace to outperform what he did in 2023 when he won that award.

"Hoerner might be a Gold Glove-caliber shortstop if he didn't share the Cubs middle infield with Dansby Swanson, so instead he is one of baseball's elite defensive second basemen. He leads all second basemen in DRS (16), OAA (12) and FRV (9), and should add a second NL Gold Glove to his mantle this offseason.," wrote Reuter.

In 2023, he had 12 defensive runs saved, was worth 13 outs above average and had a fielding run value of 10 through 1,167 innings played at the keystone, all spectacular marks that could pale in comparison to the numbers he finishes with in 2025.

Tell us Nico is good at baseball without telling us Nico is good at baseball: pic.twitter.com/IbKoqv9cOG
— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) August 5, 2025

When it comes to Crow-Armstrong, he was always known as a glove-first guy, with there being questions about his ability to hit the ball consistently at the big league level when he first came up, something that has proven to be wrong based on what he's done this season.

But as good as he's been in the batter's box, the 23-year-old is already the best defensive center fielder in baseball and likely will own that title for a long time, evident by what he's done with his glove this season.

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"PCA might be the front-runner for NL Platinum Glove honors right now as he continues his rise from promising prospect to exciting rookie to face of the franchise level star. He leads the majors in DRS (19) and FRV (20), and he passes the eye test with countless highlight-reel plays," wrote Reuter.

It's been an incredible campaign for two of Chicago's brightest stars, and with them on pace to take home some personal hardware at the end of the year, the hope is their defense can get this team to the Fall Classic in October, as well.

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