I’m now three months out from my foot surgery, and I feel like I’m so close to being able to run again. There’s still lots of stiffness, some soreness, and plenty of end-of-day swelling, but bending the foot around no longer gives off that sense of “oh crap did I just re-tear something” pain. Just stiffness and soreness. So that feels like a good sign. Never in my life – until maybe two years ago – did I think there would be a time when I’d be *pining* to be able to run.
That’s three Cubs in the top seven, and two in the top three! And those two are not Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo! I know this won’t last forever (probably?), but it’s just so much fun to see right now, especially for Baez and Schwarber, each of whom always had this kind of offensive talent, but it’s certainly been a process in accessing it.
Javy Baez, patient battler? Well, he certainly was in this at bat:
With all the HRs tonight, wanted to make sure this Javy at-bat in the first didn't get lost in the shuffle. He sees eight pitches, fouling off three. Works the count full. Goes oppo with a pitch on the outside corner. Aggressive baserunning gets him a double. Javy is locked in. pic.twitter.com/6f1J6SzXdY
To that end, and including Kyle Schwarber, Matt Snyder gets into the two mashing Cubs hitters who are not only flashing power, but have shown improved approaches at the plate. It certainly shows: both guys look very comfortable and confident at the plate, spitting on breaking pitches out of the zone, aggressively attacking pitches they want. Even when they take a strike, there’s an air of, “Meh, I didn’t really want that one. I’ll be fine.” I’m not saying this will last forever – guys go through slumps, get in their own heads, start pressing, and then (hopefully) come back out of it. But I am saying it’s great that these guys are getting to experience this month for themselves, to know what they’re capable of.
(Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Schwarber’s first homer yesterday wasn’t just a rocket, it was the hardest hit ball by any Cub in the Statcast era (since 2015):
The Cubs finally pulled two games above (or below, but, you know, this way is better) .500 on the season with last night’s win. They’d been crowding .500 like the only girl at a party, so it’s nice to see a little space created.
Hopefully Kris Bryant will be good to go tonight, though this comment from Joe Maddon before last night’s game (Cubs.com) sounds like it might not be a lock: “He wanted to see the doctor and do all the normal stuff. I think he’s fine. He just has to work through some things.”
Great shots of Jason Heyward showing off his arm (not from last night – though he did show it off – but it’s just a fun series to see):
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Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here.
Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.
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