NEWSLETTER
Terrible news about the loss of Michael K. Williams. I’m right in the middle of a re-watch of ‘The Wire,’ too. It’s not just that his most famous character, Omar Little, was such a compelling character. It’s that Williams played Omar, like so many of his other parts, with a peculiarly magnetic style. There was just something about the way he filled out his characters that drew your eye more than anyone else on screen. He stole every scene.
•  Justin Steele fell off in the 6th inning yesterday, which is where you would predict some challenges for a guy who is still stretching out and developing as a starting pitcher (it was his first time in the 6th inning as a starter in the big leagues). We’ve seen it with Adbert Alzolay, too, and it alone is not something to be terribly concerned about as having any negative future predictive power. It’s normal, and requires experience/adjustments/offseason work.
•  You would love for a guy NOT to have to go through that adjustment process, of course, but this is just a pretty typical reality: (1) you’re into the third time through the order, so the batters have seen what you have and have you timed well; (2) you’re physically wearing down a bit so the velocity and stuff are coming down a little, making you all the more hittable; and (3) the tiring makes it a little harder to perfectly repeat your mechanics, which can negatively impact your command and control. And all three of those things are hitting you all at the same time. So, yeah, it’s very normal to see young pitchers struggle with this 5th/6th inning/70-ish-pitch wall, and many never quite get past it. That’s still very TBD. I thought yesterday’s Steele start was VERY encouraging, because for those first five innings, he was getting whiffs and generating crappy contact on the ground. It was actually kind of perfect for a young September starter, showing how good he already is at this phase, and how much more he needs to do to get into the next phase.
•  Although Frank Schwindel gets the bulk of the attention for yesterday’s game-winning hit given all that came before it, big props to Alfonso Rivas for being in a position to score that run:
Alfonso Rivas was clutch today 👏
• Worked a pinch-hit, 10-pitch leadoff single
• Advanced on wild pitch
• Scored game-winning run pic.twitter.com/h41mPuqDnL— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) September 7, 2021
•  Rivas has three straight pinch hits, by the way. Not a sample that proves anything, but it’s tough to do, and requires a good plate approach up there to look as capable as he has looked. Gorgeous sequence of shots of that run scoring, by the way:
Alfonso Rivas emerges from the September afternoon shadows at Wrigley Field to score what would be the @Cubs winning run in today’s 4-3 win over the Reds.@BleacherNation @realcubsinsider #CubTogether #GoCubsGo pic.twitter.com/aa3MfYtoDU
— MBDChicago (@MBDChicago) September 7, 2021
•  Another moment that deserves attention, rightly pointed out by Andy Green:
Bench coach Andy Green mentioned Ian Happ’s play down LF line in 6th as a “huge” part of the win over Reds.
On the run, got ball back into infield, keeping go-ahead runner at third.
Green: “Somebody please write about that, because that’s how you win baseball games.” pic.twitter.com/asrEElczb0
— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) September 6, 2021
•  I’d call that a 50/50 ball to hold that runner at third with two outs (if you take a deeper route (or, obviously, if the ball gets past you)), so good work by Happ to take a good route and get there quickly. Certainly the kind of play Happ *should* be making out in left field with his speed and athleticism, but that’s no reason not to point it out with a tip of the cap. Happ, who also homered in the game, has a 93 wRC+ now, the same as Joc Pederson when he was traded to the Braves. For whatever that’s worth.
•  It’s a vibe:
"I can't describe what's going on right now, just the vibes in the clubhouse you can't beat it."
Frank Schwindel caught up postgame with @Taylor_McGregor to talk about his game-winning single 🔥 pic.twitter.com/G1LlEkwfOg
— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) September 6, 2021
•  Whenever there are multiple positive COVID-19 tests in an organization, you hold your breath for several days before you can really think you’re clear, given the transmissibility and incubation window. But so far, the Cubs have not had any additional positives after David Ross and Jed Hoyer tested positive last week (NBCSC).
•  Nico Hoerner is back up to batting practice in his second rehab of the oblique injury (Cubs.com). You could conceive of a rehab assignment next week if he continues to recover well, which would then give him at least a couple weeks’ worth of the season if there were no other setbacks. It doesn’t sound like much, but I’m telling you, I just want to see this guy get some more games and big league at bats before the season is up. He was accelerated so quickly to the big leagues (after missing time in the minors with injuries), then had time lost to the pandemic, then had multiple injuries this year. I just want to see him getting experience so he can be in the best position possible to contribute to the Cubs next year, regardless of where he plays.
•  I definitely WANT this to be a thing, as it could suggest more successes like this in the future:
It's become such a hard and fast rule in baseball that someone's career universally peaks in their mid 20s and I wonder if that has created an actual inefficiency, especially if other orgs just stop caring about the development of 28+ year old players
— Rebuild Insider Jeff Everson (@EVR551) September 5, 2021
•  The question is how much of this success is flukey (both in terms of the individuals, and having three in one year (it’s still “only” three data points out of lots and lots of shots)), and also how much of it is about making playing time available that you can’t always replicate.
•  Probably worth pointing out that Patrick Wisdom is in a funk right now, too. A lotta nothing from him the last eight games (plus that strikeout rate creeping up past 44%), which is not a length that you would otherwise notice from an established guy, but with these surprising breakout types, you examine all rough stretches a little more closely.
•  Interesting theory here on Schwindel:
I *think*, because he reaches a swing plane parallel to the ground–attack angle of 0–early and can maintain it through contact.
He gets "on plane" w/ pitches that arrive at the plate w/ a flatter approach. A hitter like Wisdom misses these.
2021 4S whiffs for each below: pic.twitter.com/svsxg2IQo2
— Lance Brozdowski (@LanceBroz) September 6, 2021
•  I’d agree with Lance that it’s a maybe situation. I think the flatter swing would certainly help him generate more contact overall, and probably even more hard contact on more types of pitches in more areas of the zone. But for power, although it is certainly better against those pitchers who work a four-seamer up from a lower attack angle (an increasingly popular approach), I would think it would reduce your power output against pretty much everything else (since everything else comes in on NOT a flat plane). Some of this bears out in Schwindel’s lower launch angle than your typical “power” hitter, and also his lower power production in the minors (than you might otherwise expect for a guy like him). So are some of the homers a little bit lucky, then? But even if they are, that doesn’t mean his approach isn’t a good one for barreling the ball consistently, even if he doesn’t hit homers at the pace he’s currently on. It just means he’d be more of a line-drive-oriented guy than a pure slugger. Interesting stuff.
•  I wish Kris Bryant nothing but good health going forward, but I’m sure tweets like this will cause Cubs fans a flashback or two:
Kris Bryant has been playing with some mild wrist discomfort so the Giants were happy to get him out of the game a couple innings early. Doesn't sound like a concern moving forward.
— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) September 6, 2021
•  The Giants come to Wrigley Field, presumably with Bryant available, on Friday. I expect he’ll get a very warm welcome from the fans.
•  Pet supplies, a water flosser, and more are your Deals of the Day at Amazon. #ad
