Through what can feel like the monotony of spring training, Craig Counsell and the Chicago Cubs coaching staff preached the running game.

Counsell and his coaches hammered home its importance throughout meetings and workouts.

“That’s been a big talk during spring training: making baserunning a part of this team’s identity,” Cubs speedy center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong told reporters after Thursday’s 10-6 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

[Cubs takeaways: What we learned as domestic slate kicks off with win over Diamondbacks]

That doesn’t mean just swiping more bags. No, it’s about being smart on the basepaths and hustling out every play no matter how routine it might seem. Third base coach Quintin Berry and first base coach José Javier – two new additions brought by Counsell in his second year – have been among the biggest advocates for that messaging.

Thursday night in Arizona, that emphasis paid dividends.

Matt Shaw came up to bat in the top of the fifth inning with two on and two outs and the Cubs clinging to a 4-3 lead. The rookie hit a ground ball to shortstop Geraldo Perdomo – seemingly an inning-ending double play and an opportunity for Arizona to tie the game up with the heart of their order due up. Perdomo fielded the ball and threw it to second baseman Ketel Marte to try and record the final out.

Except, the runner on first was Crow-Armstrong, one of the fastest players in the game and someone who had the coaching staff’s message reverberating in his head. Crow-Armstrong dashed towards second and slid in before the throw, keeping the inning alive and loading the bases.

“We’re looking to extend any inning we can,” Crow-Armstrong said.

Miguel Amaya made the Diamondbacks pay for their lackadaisicalness. The Cubs catcher roped a liner to left-center field and Arizona center fielder Jake McCarthy dove for the ball but it bounced off his glove, allowing all three runs to score. That broke the game open.

“That’s what wins baseball games,” Amaya – who finished with five RBI – told reporters after the game. “Doing the right things, hustling and getting that extra 90 [feet].”

It was proof that what the Cubs’ coaching staff has been preaching matters.

“I think the Pete base running play is a play that is the type of thing we talked about a bunch this spring, and a type of thing that I think we’re capable of executing,” Counsell told reporters after the game. “In that case, it was just we had the right guy in the right spot. But it’s, it’s also the care factor of getting an aggressive secondary lead, and thinking ‘I can beat out a routine ground ball to shortstop.’

“And the care factor is what’s really important in that.”

The Cubs, though, know those situations won’t always play out like they did Thursday. If Amaya’s ball is a few feet more to the right, maybe McCarthy catches the ball and it’s still a one-run game. Or maybe Crow-Armstrong isn’t at first base and the opposing team picks up the fielder’s choice to end the frame.

But by hustling and remembering the emphasis the coaching staff made, the Cubs were able to pick up an extra out, an extra at-bat. It led to three runs. Do that over and again and it’ll lead to more plate appearances, a few more runs and some extra wins. That’s one area where you can win games in the margins – something that will be key for the Cubs the rest of the way in 2025.

“They add up,” Counsell said. “You’re not gonna get the big hit every night, but when you get a three-run hit after a play like that, that’s the reason you do it.”