Dansby Swanson reveals a key Cubs ‘recruiting tool’

The Chicago Cubs are looking to sustain their momentum after making it back to the MLB playoffs in 2025 for the first time since 2020, and for star shortstop Dansby Swanson, it’s a reflection of the club living up to its promise to the players.

“Yeah, I mean, I think I just, I mean, I think it’s pretty easy to see just how, how our success has grown, how the roster has grown, the things we’ve been able to do to kind of more or like win on the margins,” the two-time All-Star infielder said during an appearance on the Foul Territory.

The 32-year-old Swanson then mentioned the group that particularly benefited from that approach, which he also said has become a “recruitment tool.”

“I know that’s not a popular term in today’s world. But you know, spending money in the right areas, understanding how to get the most out of guys. I think you’ve really seen that on the pitching side, which has been its own recruiting tool, just guys that have been able to come back from some injuries or, or from a year or two of what they feel like a subpar performance and being able to find themselves again and make some money from it. I think that that’s a recruiting tool of its own.”

The Cubs went 92-70 in 2025, finishing second in the National League Central Division and clinching a spot in the postseason. They made it past the NL Wild-Card Round by outlasting the San Diego Padres in three games before running into the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Divisional Round, where they Swanson and company were eliminated in five games.

But with resilience being a noticeable quality of the Cubs in Swanson’s eyes, he surely has trust in Chicago to get back even stronger in the 2026 campaign.