Although the update on Nico Hoerner wasn’t all to positive during last week’s Cubs Convention, shortstop Dansby Swanson’s outlook for Opening Day is much more favorable.

Fans were surprised to learn that Swanson underwent offseason surgery in October, news that went unknown until December. The Cubs shortstop had surgery to deal with a sports hernia, an issue that he’s reportedly had since 2023.

Swanson said he will be ready for the start of the 2025 season, which will begin with two games against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Japan in the middle of March.

Via The Athletic.

Swanson expects to be a full participant when spring training opens, and be ready for Opening Day in Tokyo against the Dodgers.

“That’s the plan,” Swanson said. “It’s a little bit of a different ramp-up than years past because of the series in Japan, but I knew that going into the procedure. I’m just excited to be able to get back out there.”

Besides the core body injury that bothered him Swanson also dealt with a knee sprain early in 2024. That leg issue kept the shortstop out for a couple weeks in May, and while Swanson had an overall down season he was still an elite defender at his position.

The offense may never be what fans hoped for, but Swanson did end the 2024 season on a good note. The right-handed hitter posted a 126 wRC+, slashing .288/.353/.452, with 8 home runs and added 14 stolen bases from July 10 through the end of the regular season.

All in all, Swanson recorded a 4.3 fWAR in 2024. Let’s hope there aren’t any more nagging injuries that pop up for the Cubs shortstop this season.

(Previous Update)

Hey, remember when the Cubs announced that Nico Hoerner had surgery in October and we were like oh shit, hopefully he’s fine by the time spring training begins? Yeah, the Cubs announced that less than two weeks after Hoerner had his flexor tendon surgery, so it’s a little odd to say the least that the team announced just today, Dec. 7, that Dansby Swanson also had surgery back in October.

What makes the timing slightly more weird is the vagueness of the surgery. The only specifics we know is that Swanson underwent surgery to resolve a core injury. The good news is that the team says the gold glove shortstop is not expected to miss any time because of the procedure.

The Cubs announce shortstop Dansby Swanson underwent successful surgery on a core injury in early October.

Swanson is not expected to miss any time as a result of the surgery.

— Meghan Montemurro (@M_Montemurro) December 7, 2024

Swanson, 30, did miss time on the injured list during the 2024 season, but that was a right-knee sprain that he initially played through in April and ultimately missed 10 days in May. The shortstop ended the year playing in 149 games and slashed .242/.312/.390, with 16 home runs. His 99 wRC+ dipped below league average for the first time since 2021. Still, backed by another elite defensive season at shortstop, Swanson was worth 4.3 fWAR in 2024.

I do have to note, while Swanson’s offensive numbers were down this past season he did bounce back in the final three months of the year. From July 10 through the end of the regular season Swanson posted a 126 wRC+ in 278 plate appearances with a slash line of .288/.353/.452, hitting 8 home runs and stealing 14 bases.

So, let’s hope that Swanson will indeed be fine and that by the time spring training begins he won’t have any restrictions. Tough to speculate on what the injury could have been, but generally a core surgery could mean a hernia or a back issue. But again, we don’t actually know and probably won’t know until Swanson addresses the media.