When you think of the Chicago Cubs and defense, the first name that probably comes to mind is Pete Crow-Armstrong. That’s because of all the highlight-reel plays you see him make. He should come to mind immediately. He’s an excellent defensive player (and I know it’s a sore spot with fans that he doesn’t lead the position in Defensive Runs Saved).

But the gap between the Cubs and the No. 2 team in Runs Saved is such that even if you replaced Crow-Armstrong and his 14 Runs Saved with an MLB-average defender, the Cubs would still rank first in the stat this season.

Most Defensive Runs Saved – 2026 Season

The Cubs have a positive Runs Saved total at every position except first base, and they’re at -1 there which is essentially league average.

Their third baseman, Alex Bregman, is tied for second at the position with 10 Runs Saved.

Here’s what Bregman can do:

And oh, here’s what a third baseman other than Bregman can do. The Cubs don’t miss a beat.

Their right fielder, Seiya Suzuki is third at his position with 10 Runs Saved. He’d never had more than 3 Runs Saved in right field prior to this season.

Suzuki has the two plays with the highest run value by a Cubs defender this season, catches along the right field line, a week apart

Their left fielder, Ian Happ, is tied for fifth there with 6 Runs Saved. He’s never won a Fielding Bible Award but has won four straight Gold Glove Awards.

Pitchers Shota Imanaga and Colin Rea are tied for third with 4 Runs Saved. They each have 4 pickoffs, tied for third-most in MLB this season. Cubs pitchers rank second to the Mets in Runs Saved this season.

We haven’t even mentioned past Fielding Bible Award winners Nico Hoerner (3 Runs Saved at second base) and Dansby Swanson (4 Runs Saved at shortstop).

Hoerner can still do this

Swanson, this:

The Cubs turn grounders and bunts into outs at the highest rate of any team (77% of the time) and turn balls hit in the air into out 69% of the time

The Cubs also rank second in how many runs they get from infield  positioning (they’re actually slightly below average in outfield positioning). As such, they’ve turned grounders and bunts into outs at a higher rate than any other team (their MLB rank on balls hit in the air hovers between fifth and ninth depending on the day).

The one spot that can get a little dicey is catcher, where Carson Kelly has totaled -4 Runs Saved. But when the Cubs need defense, they’ve got Miguel Amaya and his 5 Runs Saved. And by the way, not factored into Runs Saved, Cubs catchers have the third-best rate at challenging pitches this season.

It’s pretty easy to see the value of the defense. The Cubs have a 4.05 ERA and a 4.64 FIP. The 0.59 gap is the biggest for any team. If the Cubs had a 4.64 ERA, they’d have allowed 70 more earned runs and probably wouldn’t have as secure a foothold on a playoff spot as they do now.

I got asked the other day if this is the best defensive team the Cubs have had since 2016. That’s the last year they led the majors in Defensive Runs Saved. And if you’re reading this you probably know what happened that season. Good defense was quite meaningful then and quite meaningful now.

Cubs Team Leaders – Defensive Runs Saved

>> All but Amaya rank top five at their position