A Must-Read on Addison Russell, Some Housekeeping, and Other Bullets

addison russell batting cubsThe Wife and The Kiddos just departed – they’re heading to a wedding in North Carolina, which takes place tomorrow afternoon. Thing is, I’m going to the wedding, too. My step-dad is picking me up early tomorrow morning to drive us both down. I tell you this now not only for the lulz it might provide you as you imagine the absolute disaster I’m going to be tomorrow at a wedding, but also to advise you that: (1) when the Blogathon ends tonight at 7pm CT, I’m pretty much going straight to bed; (2) I’ll be rolling out of bed and into a car in the morning, very likely to continue sleeping; and (3) coverage around here will be disrupted for a bit.

Luis is going to write-up tonight’s game for tomorrow morning, and that will be taking the place of the Enhanced Box Score. There won’t be usual Bullets (unless I somehow decide to write them from the road, which seems incredibly unlikely), and there might not be normal posting tomorrow, either – I’ll literally be going from bed to car to hotel to get dressed to the wedding. The timing couldn’t be avoided, so, to ensure the full Blogathon, this was the only approach. Hopefully you understand tomorrow. Things should be normal-ish on Sunday, and normal on Monday.

  • An awesome, extensive read from Sahadev Sharma on Addison Russell’s adjustments at the plate this year, and how they’re paying off. Hands a little lower, leg kick instead of a toe tap, generally feeling more natural. So far, so good. It’s almost been easy to forget that, in addition to the fantastic up-the-middle glove, Russell has huge offensive upside. Since July 10, the 21-year-old is hitting .280/.368/.380 with a 12.3% BB rate and 17.5% K rate.
  • If you noticed Jake Arrieta’s faux stirrup socks last night …
  • … and you didn’t like them, then you’ll be happy to know that Arrieta was deeply disappointed in his decision (Cubs.com): “The socks were awful, the worst socks I’ve ever worn. I wanted to wear a different stirrup that we had with one of our throwback [uniforms]. We didn’t have those. I wanted to wear my short pants for the first time – they just got in. Unfortunately, the socks stunk, so you won’t see those again. You’ll see the high pants again, just better socks.” Good for you, Jake. Own your mistakes. Correct them, and move on.
  • Patrick Mooney with more on Joe Maddon/Starlin Castro/trade stuff. There’s very little reason to expect a Castro trade today.
  • There was a little dustup in the Cardinals/Rockies game last night, with tempers flaring, balls flying, and Carlos Martinez’s finger displaying.
  • If you weren’t around early, early this morning: Castro’s great play and Rizzo’s homer, and the Cubs have spoken with the Braves about Julio Teheran.
  • Speaking of the Rizzo homer, by the way, this is what came next:
  • written by

    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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