Nico Hoerner, Dansby Swanson and more: 3 takeaways from Chicago Cubs spring training

Chicago Cubs spring training: David Ross talks new shift rules

While there has been plenty of talk this spring about the pitch clock and how it may be impacting pitchers and hitters and shortening the time of games, some of the discussion surrounding the disappearance of the shift has faded into the background. However, that doesn’t mean that the Cubs and manager David Ross haven’t already thought about how the new rule might make a difference in 2023.

“You’re going to push the boundaries,” Ross said. “I think there may be some teams that flip-flop infielders between innings. You know, somebody will come up with something that we hadn’t thought of once we process that a little bit and think about it.

“I think when you have a straight pull hitter, we will push the shortstop as close as we can to second base and move the second baseman over to that four-hole. I think there will be some areas where we adjust and you know, whether you play the line, I think there are some areas that we’ll adjust.”

For Ross, having a pair of defensive-minded infielders in Hoerner and Swanson up the middle could prove to be a big plus this season with the change in shift rules.