Chicago Cubs: Anthony Rizzo’s rough April
Anthony Rizzo is the on and off the field leader of the Chicago Cubs. His weak start to the 2018 season, fortunately, hasn’t been contagious to the other hitters. But if the Cubbies want to see the NLCS for their fourth consecutive season, he can only slump for so long.
Since his Chicago Cubs debut in 2012, Anthony Rizzo has been the catalyst for the Cubbies offense. At just 28 years old, Anthony Rizzo’s on and off the field leadership has made his presence almost that of a veteran. But as their leader struggled through injury and poor performance in April, the Chicago Cubs still scored runs enough for a 15-10 record.
In his week April 2018, Anthony Rizzo’s wRC+ was just 41. His average wRC+ is 144.25 since 2014. The Cubs are already fifth in MLB in runs per game at 5.2—so how much better will they be once Rizzo returns to form?
It’s only a matter of time
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Those who’ve watched the Chicago Cubs over the last few seasons know that Anthony Rizzo is as streaky of a hitter as anyone. When he’s hot, he can hit the ball anywhere on the field with power. He can hit lefties nearly as well as righties.
Other numbers suggest extra-Anthony Rizzo reasons for his weak performance so far as well. In 2017, Rizzo was hitting .335 on balls he put in play. In his 17 games in 2018, that’s down to .182.
Of course, factors like exit velocity play a role in those numbers, but often times plain bad luck can bring BAbip down too.
A good offense gets better with Anthony Rizzo
The Chicago Cubs aren’t necessarily in desperate need for an offensive spark; they’re scoring more runs per game than any National League team that’s not in Atlanta.
If Anthony Rizzo turns it around—and none of the other major lineup pieces fall into significant slumps—all of a sudden the Chicago Cubs might start looking like a top offense in MLB. Players like Kyle Schwarber and Jason Heyward are making huge strides from 2017, with wRC+s of 164 and 105 so far in 2018 respectively.
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Meanwhile, Albert Almora Jr. and Javier Baez are getting comfortable as the one-two punch atop the lineup. Former MVP Kris Bryant’s wRC+ is up to 157 so far.
If those trends continue, then you add even just a career average Anthony Rizzo, the Chicago Cubs look like a threat to score as many runs as any team in MLB.