August 1, 2015: Rizzoing

The Cubs captured their 4th win in a row on Saturday night in Milwaukee.  They go for the 4 game sweep on Sunday.  It was a nice outing for Hendricks, and another big game for Rizzo.  By the way, he has hit a home run in 4 consecutive games.

I wonder what the record is for most consecutive games with a home run… so I looked it up.  Anthony is halfway home.  8 games in a row is the record, with 3 people tied for this.  In the NL, it’s Dale Long who did it with the Pirates in 1956… looking ahead, he would tie Dale Long in Pittsburgh if he keeps this going…  In the AL, it’s Ken Griffey Jr in 1993 and Don Mattingly in 1987 who got to 8.  Only 17 players in MLB history have hit HRs in 6 or more consecutive games.  Chris Davis hit long balls in 6 in a row most recently in 2012.  Obviously, Anthony is zoned in right now.. but this just didn’t happen overnight.

Go to ESPN chicago, pull up teams, select Cubs, and select stats.  Yeah, now you know why this guy is our leader and a legitimate MVP candidate.  He’s leading the Cubs in batting average at .290, which isn’t very good considering nobody on the Cubs is hitting over .300.  That is of course besides Mr. Schwarber, who’s at .338 in his short stint, and also went deep on Saturday night.  Then there’s HRs with 20, RBIs with 60, OBP at .400, and hits with 108.  Anthony in a clean sweep.  Digging a little deeper, he’s 2nd on the team in runs at 57, 1st with 26 doubles, 3rd with 2 triples, 3rd with 51 walks, and actually 2nd with 14 stolen bases.  The guy does it all.  Is this an indication of the Cubs offensive woes more than anything?

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Back to Anthony though… he’s been much more than just the offensive stalwart.  His defense isn’t too shabby either.  Sitting at a .997 fielding percentage, he’s tied for 7th best among 1B in the majors.  He’s also a leader in that clubhouse, and that’s huge.  He wasn’t always like that, but he’s developed into one… maybe out of necessity, or maybe that was just part of his development as a player.  The guy has been everything the Cubs have needed him to be to make this rebuild a success.

So as Sunday rolls around, let’s root for 5.  5 wins in a row, and 5 games in a row with HRs by Anthony Rizzo.  Keep on winning, and keep on Rizzoing.  Go Cubs!