It seems like just a few days ago that I was on Twitter having a debate centered around the question, “Who would you rather trade: Addison Russell or Javier Baez?”
@nissen54 @Teddymaciswack debate on the radio… would you give up baez or Russell for sonny gray. If so which one.
— Joe Porter (@joeporterme) July 14, 2017
Now to be fair, the debate occurred before the Cubs began their assault on the second half of the season and since that debate, the Cubs have won six straight games. At this point I think it’s safe to say that if the same question would come up now, every Cub fan would probably laugh at the thought of trading either player.
The laughter would be the result of both Russell and Baez choosing the same time to heat up at the plate. During the Cubs six-game win streak, the middle infielders are putting up some absolute gaudy numbers. More important than the stats however, is the fact that each player has come up with big hits during a big moment of the game. Something the first-half Cubs were desperately missing.
None of those hits were bigger than Addison Russell’s game winning home run on July 14 against the Baltimore Orioles — saving the Cubs the embarrassment of pissing away an eight-run lead.
ADDI!!!!!!!! #ThatsCub #Cubs pic.twitter.com/2CV77Pigd6
— Adam Nissen (@nissen54) July 15, 2017
As big as Russell has been during this streak, Baez has been even better. While he doesn’t have any game-winning home runs, Baez has quietly put together arguably the best second half start on the team.
Earlier this week, my colleague Sean Sears wrote an article about another Cub, Willson Contreras, turning into the hottest hitter in the second half. While I would definitely agree that Contreras has been on a tear himself, when you put their numbers side by side, it really puts what Baez has done into perspective.
Contreras: .409/.458/.818/1.276 OPS, 2 HR, 3 2B, 7 RBI, 9 H
Baez: .500/.529/.750/1.279 OPS, 1 HR, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 8 H
The fact that Baez’s name is even in the mix as the Cubs hottest hitter is nothing short of amazing. We’ve seen flashes of his bat (2016 NLDS/NLCS) but we’ve also seen a very inconsistent bat at times. The inconsistency came from piss poor plate discipline which resulted in a very high K% that frustrated the living hell out of many fans. Nothing was more frustrating then having to watch Javy swing wildly at breaking ball…..after breaking ball…..after breaking ball.
While his K% still remains higher than it should be, Baez is putting together a pretty good month of July. That is best exemplified by what he has done during his last 16 at-bats since the All-Star break.
Javy started the 2nd half 0-for-5. Since then: BB, 1B, 1B, 1B, K, 1B, K, 2B, HR, 1B, 1B, K, K, F9, 2B, HR
— Sahadev Sharma (@sahadevsharma) July 19, 2017
While I love seeing all those hits, I think the best thing about the stats above is the fact you only see the letter K four times. Look, I think I’ve finally realized that Javy will never be a .325 career hitter and will always be known for his defensive prowess. However, his last 16 at-bats have shown all of us that he is capable of being a dangerous bat in an already dangerous lineup.
(I also think it’s great that we have to argue about who’s the hottest Cubs hitter at this point after sitting through a bullshit first half.)
