Anthony Rizzo Has Just Two Homers in the Last Two Months – So That’s Kinda Weird
This is not necessarily a post designed to lay out precisely what’s happening with a guy, because I really don’t know. But it’s become something very specific worth pointing out.
Anthony Rizzo ain’t hitting dingers.
Since mid-May (199 plate appearances), Rizzo has hit just two home runs. One home run per month. For a guy like him, that’s kinda nuts.
I tried to look under the hood to see what’s up, but mostly came up empty, other than further description of him being off:
But *why* are these things happening, while the rest of his game stays strong? Really hard to say, and I don't immediately see signal in his discipline and pitch data. Best I can see is he's swinging a bit more, seeing fewer fastballs and sliders, and seeing more sinkers? pic.twitter.com/t7aKPmYo9W
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 14, 2019
Perhaps there's a mechanical issue that is impacting Rizzo's loft: https://t.co/WgvHlXlAYT
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 14, 2019
Historically, Rizzo is in the top 40 to 60 or so launch angle guys in the league – he hits it up in the air a lot. That’s his game. This year? His launch angle is not only down, but as the league keeps trending up, he’s currently 216th(!) in MLB in launch angle. So, obviously there’s something going on there, and maybe it’s a minor mechanical issue.
The good news, again, is that Rizzo is still hitting really well overall. Mostly, he’s just not hitting dingers right now. If he’s healthy, that’ll work itself out I reckon. In any case, it’s on the radar.
