Enjoying a Comeback Walk-Off Win, Rodriguez Great, Happ Hot, Hoerner Timing, and Other Cubs Bullets

I haven’t watched the new ‘Spider-Man’ trailer yet because I’m trying to save it for a time when I can really sit and enjoy it. Yes, that’s how lame I am: I’m treating a 2-minute(?) trailer like it’s a whole dang show I have to turn into event TV.

•   If the Chicago Cubs are going to beat a team down in the standings these days, it better at least be really fun (and end a 13-game, record-setting, home losing streak … woof). So, mission accomplished last night, with a late comeback and then a Rafael Ortega walk-off.

•   Bonus love to Michael Hermosillo on his first hit at Wrigley Field being a big one, a double to the wall that tied the game in the 8th. Just give him some leash to keep making starts and making adjustments. All I’m saying.

•   Also, Ian Happ does deserve quite a bit of attention for his big night, which came on the heels of a stretch where he’s actually having a lot of success. His year on the whole still represents a terrible level of production (.195/.301/.361, 83 wRC+), but I do want to point out that over the last seven games, he’s done nothing but rake – two homers, four doubles, four singles, three walks, just three strikeouts). Video game shit for the last week, albeit against rough pitching staffs.

•   Before we go too far, it’s worth noting that until this streak, Happ was hitting just .176/.284/.321 with a 69 wRC+ in mid-August. That does underscore how crazy hot this past week has been, but one blistering week doesn’t change much. I tend to think Happ is still going to receive at least fringe non-tender discussion if he doesn’t (1) finish the year very hot, and (2) do it in a way where we can isolate what actually changed, and project that it’s some kind of fix that carries forward into the future.

•   As noted last night, Nico Hoerner did not “re-injure” his oblique on that swing that took him out of his first rehab game, but David Ross put his timetable at “hopefully” he can be back in a rehab game in “maybe a week or two.” (Cubs.com) So, like I said, it’s still going to be a while before he’s back, if he comes back this year at all.

•   Yesterday afternoon, I was talking in a text thread with some friends about the Chicago Cubs’ bullpen going forward, and I was giving out some Manny Rodriguez love, as I am wont to do. I just really like the guy. I decided then I was gonna note something about how good he’s been since that White Sox series where he got hit around a bit. And that was before he stepped up last night with a great appearance to help lock down last night’s win! Since the Sox series, Rodriguez has gone six straight more-or-less perfect appearances, dropping his ERA to 2.70, improving his K rate to 28.6%, and dropping his walk rate to 7.1%. Fun fact? Each of those last two number exactly match his rates at Triple-A Iowa. The other thing he’s carried over from the minors this year? An impressive groundball rate thanks to a brutal (in a good way) two-seamer:

•   He got the whiff there, but that’s actually been pretty uncommon with him on the two-seamer this year, which has been more of a groundball contact pitch off of which he plays the four-seamer and the slider for whiffs. His 57.7% groundball rate would be 15th best among all relievers if he had enough innings to qualify (which is not to say he could keep it up over a full season like those guys have, but only to give you context for how good it presently is). There’s a reason the Cubs surprised everyone and added Rodriguez to the 40-man roster a couple falls ago straight out of A-ball so he wouldn’t get plucked in the Rule 5 draft. We’re seeing that reason, and I think he’s probably going to be competing for the closer job as soon as next year.

•   Speaking of which, make sure you read Bryan’s early take on the Rule 5 eligible prospects whom the Cubs might protect (surprisingly or otherwise) this year.

•   Random Giancarlo because good god:

•   Old friends came to Wrigley Field last night:

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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