3 Cubs players who’ll be better in 2023, and 2 who won’t

Expect these three Chicago Cubs players to have a better year in 2023 and these other two to stay the same or take a step back.

The Chicago Cubs have hopes of getting back closer to their previous winning ways. The last two offseasons have been a slow build toward relevancy. The club was even more active this winter, bringing in some notable bats and arms for a fight in the National League Central.

The team is taking a chance on several rebound candidates from other teams. Together, they’ll hope to make the Cubs more than the best of the non-contenders in the division.

Three players on the roster stick out as the ones most prone to have a better year in 2023. Meanwhile, two will either stay the same or take a step back from what they did in 2022.

Why Cubs pitcher Marcus Stroman will have a better year in 2023

Marcus Stroman went 6-7 with a 3.50 ERA in his first year with the Cubs. It was actually pretty close to what he has done in his career. Now 67-67 with a 3.62 ERA in his eight big league seasons, we have enough of a sample to have an idea of what to expect from him.

Stroman took a while to find his groove in Chicago. The first half included 11 starts and a 2-5 record. The 4.69 ERA wasn’t what the Cubs signed up for.

Fortunately, he turned things around in his final 14 starts after the All-Star break. Stroman went 4-2 with a 2.71 ERA in the second half of the season. The Cubs, overall, seemed to become a much bigger threat as the year went on. They never had a chance to actually make the playoffs, but they made some noise and were far from a doormat in the final weeks.

Interestingly, Stroman got hit around slightly worse in the second half. Hitters slashed .237/.292/.362 versus him in those 14 starts compared to the .230/.280/.399 they hit against him in the first half. This can be spun in any direction. What we can count on is for Stroman to bear down and have a better overall season with Chicago in 2023.