Suzuki's slam sparks Cubs' offense in quest to regain early-season slugging form

DENVER – Once the baseball cleared the wall down the left-field line at Coors Field, Seiya Suzuki punched the air and let out a shout as he began his trip around the bases on Thursday afternoon. It was the kind of display the Cubs have been lacking and surely brought on a wave of relief amid these last few frustrating weeks.

Suzuki’s fourth-inning grand slam off Rockies righty Ryan Feltner helped shake Chicago’s offense awake en route to a much-needed 9-3 victory to avoid a sweep in Colorado. Alex Bregman also went deep in the seventh and Carson Kelly homered in the eighth, offering insurance and breathing room in a ballpark that requires it.

“I think it builds some confidence,” Suzuki said via his interpreter, Edwin Stanberry. “Hopefully this leads to bigger things and we can get things going.”

The Cubs had not belted at least three homers in a game since April 25. The nine runs plated in the series finale at Coors Field were equal to the output of the previous four games combined for the North Siders. It was an encouraging return of the type of offensive production that Chicago featured over the first six weeks of the season.

In the hours leading up to Thursday’s game, as Cubs manager Craig Counsell took on another wave of questions about the lineup’s persistent struggles, he pointed to power as a critical missing ingredient. While situational hitting has rightly been in the spotlight in recent weeks, the staggering drop in slugging percentage has loomed larger.

• Counsell tossed in sixth inning after arguing about non-reviewable play

“One of the things we’re missing offensively, we’re missing slug as a group,” Counsell said before the game. “There’s been a big focus on runners in scoring position, but we’re missing slug.”

As if the hitters heard Counsell’s comments, the slug showed up in a big way in support of Cubs starter Edward Cabrera, who worked into the sixth.

Feltner went nine up, nine down against the Cubs before flinching in the fourth. Pete Crow-Armstrong and Michael Busch each singled, and Ian Happ drew a walk to load the bases for Suzuki. The slugging right fielder hammered a 1-0 slider from Feltner out to left to give the Cubs a 4-1 advantage. It marked the third slam of Suzuki’s career and 10th homer this season.

Suzuki said his reaction up the first-base line stemmed from his own struggles to deliver in the clutch.

“That felt big,” Suzuki said. “There’s, more so, frustration that I had towards myself not hitting in those opportunities. I was finally able to get that hit, but I felt like I was a little frustrated before, just because I couldn’t help out our pitchers.”

Bregman, who entered the day batting .138 (4-for-29) with a .172 slugging percentage in eight games in June, homered off Blas Castaño in the seventh after a one-out double from Crow-Armstrong. It was the sixth homer of the year for the Cubs' third baseman, but the first that was not a solo shot.

“I think Seiya needs that swing. I think Alex needs that swing,” Counsell said. “So, those are good signs.”

The same went for Kelly, whose two-out solo homer off Sammy Peralta in the eighth was the first blast for the Cubs' catcher since April 18.

The overall output on Thursday – including a 4-for-7 showing with runners in scoring position – looked more like what the Cubs did out of the gates this year.

During the team’s 27-12 start to the season through May 8, the offense ranked fifth in the Majors in both isolated power (.170) and slugging percentage (.429). In the next 29 games (7-22) through Wednesday, the Cubs spiraled to last in baseball in the same two categories in that span, posting a .121 ISO and a .332 SLG.

Among the Cubs main nine batters, Crow-Armstrong (+.095 SLG) and Busch (+.072 SLG) were the only two to see a notable increase in slug in the past 29 games (entering Thursday), compared to the first 39 games. Moisés Ballesteros (-.367), Suzuki (-.291), Nico Hoerner (-.190), Dansby Swanson (-.134) and Kelly (-.112) had big decreases in SLG.

“I think we have maybe three guys playing to their potential,” Bregman said. “So, we’ve got a lot of work to do and we’ve got to be better. We’re way better of a ballclub than we’ve shown. We’ve got to look in the mirror and figure out a way to get it done on the field.

“That’s my impression. We’ve got to play better. Today was a good step in the right direction.”