The Chicago Cubs have no intention of snubbing their primary shortstop despite his struggles at the plate. The Cubs’ president of baseball operations, Jed Hoyer, has made his intentions clear with the $177 million star after their latest loss. For Hoyer, defense holds the upper hand on a Cubs’ team that has been failing to score adequate runs.

After the Cubs lost 5-2 against the Colorado Rockies, reporters asked Hoyer whether the team had considered benching Dansby Swanson. The shortstop has been struggling to record enough hits throughout the season. Hoyer denied any such possibility.

“To answer the question directly, we can’t run away from our run prevention when we struggle offensively,” replied Hoyer, per ESPN’s Jesse Rogers.

The Cubs’ offense has been faltering since the season’s start. They are batting just .239 collectively, as star hitters come up short at the plate. Swanson is one of them. He is experiencing his worst season in Chicago since he signed a 7-year, $177 million deal in December 2022.

The fourth-year Cubs player is hitting only .176 in 70 games, with 8 home runs and 30 RBI. His OPS (.598) has also gone down during his slump; it’s several points less than his career OPS of .725. However, it’s his defense that has cemented Swanson’s place on the team, according to Hoyer.

This season, the Cubs’ shortstop has registered a 0.6 dWAR with a .985 fielding percentage. However, the two-time Gold Glove winner’s defensive abilities can only carry the team so far. The lineup failed to score runs even against the worst team in the league, the Rockies. With a 28-47 record, Colorado is 11 games away from a Wild Card Spot. However, the Cubs still have a chance but after their lineup failed again on Tuesday, manager Craig Counsell did not hold back from calling out his players.

Craig Counsell puts Cubs offense on notice

There is not much the on-field defense can do if the lineup stops putting in a competitive performance. During their 5-2 loss, the Cubs went 0-for-8 with runners in scoring positions. They stranded nine runners on base as well.

Following the game, manager Craig Counsell reflected on the shortcomings. He stressed the importance of putting up more runs on the scoreboard.

“We got to take advantage of the opportunities. We gotta score,” said Counsell, per 104.3 The Score. “We’ve got to get hits in those spots. Do something better offensively. They just weren’t good enough”

This has been the Cubs’ issue for several games. They scored only a run each in two games during their series loss to the San Francisco Giants. In their previous series, the Giants even delivered a humiliating 18-3 loss to the Cubs.

This is not the first time Counsell addressed the Cubs’ issues. After the team lost their series against the Oakland Athletics, Counsell spoke about the same.

“We’re not playing well enough to win a lot of baseball games,” Counsell reportedly said during a postgame interview. “You have to earn it, and we’re not earning it.”

But Swanson isn’t the only key hitter who is struggling. Alex Bregman is hitting only .169 with runners in scoring position this season. Nico Hoerner has only hit 4 homers so far as well.

That said, the Cubs will face the Rockies again on Wednesday as they try to win the series.