Nico Hoerner on struggling Cubs: 'I don't think there's ever been an effort or spirit issue with this group'

(670 The Score) As the Cubs continue to wallow under .500, their struggles shouldn’t be traced to their mental or emotional approach to the game, second baseman Nico Hoerner said.

Hoerner shared that perspective after Marquee Sports Network analyst Cliff Floyd recently expressed his belief that “every time the team gets down, they sort of feel like they’re out of the game” before questioning why the Cubs don’t consistently have more "fight" in them.

The Cubs have dropped to 37-42 after losing three of their past four games, which included a 5-4 setback to the Giants on Monday in which Chicago blew a two-run lead in the ninth inning. The Cubs are now nine games behind the NL Central-leading Brewers.

“It’s easy to see the result end of it and equate it to the emotional state of the team, right?” Hoerner said on the Parkins & Spiegel Show on Tuesday afternoon. “We all feel the results, it’s real. I don’t think there’s ever been an effort or spirit issue with this group, but I do see how from an outside perspective you see low-scoring games over and over and over and you can be fed up with it. People from the outside have every right to say what they want about that. You know, I think when it comes to a fight perspective, even games where we haven’t come all the way back, we have put a lot of runners on base and hit well against late-end bullpen guys, which is usually the hardest time. So I don’t think there’s been an issue with fight or spirit.”

Hoerner then shared his appreciation for playing in a big market where fans care so much.

"We all want to be in place where we're held to a high standard," Hoerner said.