Seiya Suzuki\u2019s<\/b> bat is roaring to life at exactly the right time.<\/p>\n
Slumping for almost the entire second half, Suzuki put on a power-hitting show in the regular season\u2019s last days, reestablishing himself as a fearsome middle-of-the-order presence with five home runs in the Cubs\u2019 last four games.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s one of the best hitters in baseball,\u201d left fielder Ian Happ<\/b> said, \u201cone of the most beautiful right-handed swings in the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
Suzuki\u2019s trip to the bleachers Sunday helped the Cubs to a 2-0 victory over the Cardinals that locked in a 92-70 record. An opening-round, best-of-three series with the Padres begins Tuesday at Wrigley Field.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith the next few games, [it\u2019s about] getting into the box, rebuilding that confidence back up, get that confidence going, then bringing that into the postseason,\u201d Suzuki said on the team\u2019s most recent road trip. \u201cWhen I was reflecting through the whole season, there were times when I\u2019d step up in the box [with] low confidence.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, the biggest thing is regaining that, then bringing that into the postseason.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mission accomplished.<\/p>\n
Suzuki is heading into the postseason looking like a different hitter than the one he was for much of the second half. In his first 53 games after the All-Star break, he hit .200 with only two homers. In the last six games, he hit .318 with five homers.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s great to have a player that goes in with a ton of confidence,\u201d manager Craig Counsell<\/b> said. \u201cHe struggled for a bit of the second half, for a pretty good portion of the second half. But he picked it up at a good time. .\u2009.\u2009. He\u2019s definitely entering the postseason in a very confident place.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a great sight,\u201d shortstop Dansby Swanson<\/b> said, \u201cseeing him get back in rhythm, seeing him exude some confidence and be the player we all know that he is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Suzuki wasn\u2019t alone in experiencing an 11th-hour resurgence ahead of the playoffs. Center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong<\/b> also cooled off after an MVP-caliber first half. He has come back to life of late, too, and the Cubs\u2019 offense is looking like it did before the break.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s good news as they look to make a deep October run.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe recent couple of games, the offense is back to where it should be,\u201d Suzuki said Sunday. \u201cGoing into the playoffs, everybody has that confidence, especially the offense right now. Hopefully, we can use that as a strength in the playoffs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rookie slugger Moises Ballesteros<\/b> got his first big-league action as a catcher for six innings before moving to first base. It was only his second major-league game playing the field; he subbed in at first base Friday.<\/p>\n
Ballesteros is obviously here for his bat and has seen regular playing time as a designated hitter over the season\u2019s last couple of weeks. But Counsell wanted to make sure that Ballesteros wasn\u2019t completely cold in case he\u2019s needed in the field during the postseason, as unlikely as that might be.<\/p>\n
The first two games of the Cubs\u2019 series against the Padres will start at 2:08 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Game 1 and Game 2 will air on ABC 7. All games in the best-of-three series will be played at Wrigley Field.<\/p>\n
The rookie righty was one of the best pitchers in baseball in the second half but will miss the first round of the playoffs after going on the IL with a rib fracture.<\/p>\n
In this week\u2019s \u201cPolling Place,\u201d respondents made their picks.<\/p>\n
The 7-3 victory against the Cardinals gave the Cubs a 49-31 record in their first 80 home games this season. They wrap up the regular season Sunday.<\/p>\n
Suzuki, who homered for the fifth time in four days to help the Cubs beat the Cardinals, looks like a fearsome middle-of-the-order presence heading into the postseason.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":100299,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100298","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\n