Sometimes, a very good pitcher just doesn’t have it. But that’s not always enough to generate significant offense. You also have to take advantage with your bat.
To wit, today, Dodgers lefty Julio Urias came out of the gate with zero command. He’s falling behind in every count, he hit two batters, he’s giving up rockets. After plating a run on a bases-loaded Nico Hoerner single, the Cubs had another bases-loaded opportunity for P.J. Higgins.
Again, Urias fell behind, and he gave Higgins a meeeeeatball 2-0 fastball right down the middle. Higgins fouled it back. He stepped out, and you could tell he was thinking, dang, that pitch was crushable.
But he stayed in the at bat, got it to a full count. And this time, when Urias made another mistake – this time in a seriously pull-able spot – Higgins didn’t miss it:
Higgins continues to hit in his limited opportunities. He’s had only 83 plate appearances so far this year, but he’s hitting a whopping .284/.354/.527/144 wRC+.