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Schwarber Is Due To Break-Out
Anyone that has played baseball at a competitive level knows baseball is a game of highs and lows. The hottest hitter can ride a hitting streak of twenty games and follow that up with an 0-20 streak. It’s just the nature of the game.
Even Schwarber himself acknowledges that.
“It’s a crazy game,” Schwarber said. “It can put you in a great place. And it can put you in a bad place. So you just try to stay right here — just try to stay right in the middle.”
Patrick Mooney of CSNChicago wrote an article explaining why Cubs management has no plans of moving Schwarber out of the leadoff spot anytime soon. While the low average and high strikeout total should be worrisome (according to Haugh), there are other numbers that show Schwarber in the leadoff hole is not as bad as it seems.
“In terms of grinding out at-bats, only two hitters in The Show — Toronto’s Jose Bautista and San Francisco’s Brandon Belt — have seen more pitches than Schwarber (704) so far this season. Schwarber’s 24 walks lead the team and rank tied for seventh in the National League.”
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From the games I’ve watch this year, I’ve also noticed something pretty interesting about Schwarber’s at-bats. When I was watching the Cubs drop two of three to St. Louis this weekend, I noticed that Schwarber was absolutely crushing baseballs — they just so happened to be hit directly at a defender. At one point in the series, Schwarber had three at-bats with an exit velocity over 100 mph (all resulted in outs.)
Kyle Schwarber's last three balls in play have all had at least a 73% hit probability.
0-3.
— Andy (@Behind_The_Ivy) May 14, 2017
I hate to use the argument of “tough luck” but that’s exactly what it looks like Schwarber is going through. Joe Maddon seems to agree.
“If you keep playing back the tape, I’m seeing great swing, ball fouled back,” Maddon said. “It’s not coming over our dugout. Once in a while, it’s pulled on something soft. But a lot of them are going straight back in. It’s not like he’s slow or he’s not on time. He’s just a click underneath the baseball.”
