This story was excerpted from Jordan Bastian’s Cubs Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
CHICAGO -- When the Cubs’ offense was functioning as arguably the best unit in baseball over the first two months of the season, Kyle Tucker’s impact and influence was undeniable. He featured power plus speed, while showcasing a stubborn approach to plate discipline that had a trickle-down effect on the lineup.
Even when Tucker slipped into an offensive slump early in the second half, he still got on base at a respectable clip. That presence has been missing for the bulk of September as he has dealt with a left calf strain while on the 10-day injured list. The goal is to get Tucker back in a game by Friday as part of a short ramp to the Cubs’ upcoming National League Wild Card Series.
The Cubs know Tucker’s impact begins with simply being in a lineup.
“There’s value in that in itself whether he was struggling or not,” Cubs hitting coach Dustin Kelly said prior to Wednesday’s game at Wrigley Field. “His at-bats and his presence in the lineup, one, puts everybody really where they’re supposed to be in the lineup.
“And it just gives us another left-handed power bat that forces teams to have to make a bullpen decision that third time through the lineup. His name goes into the equation of whether they go get that arm out of the bullpen, or if they let that starter go that extra two or three hitters.”
The current plan, as Cubs manager Craig Counsell detailed on Wednesday, calls for Tucker to come off the IL and return as a designated hitter on Friday, barring anything unexpected. He may not be at full speed when it comes to running, but Chicago wants to get him some plate appearances and game action before the postseason.
Kelly said Tucker has the potential to find his rhythm at the plate quickly, given the outfielder’s simple routine behind the scenes and that elite plate discipline. Tucker also has a recent example of returning successfully without a rehab assignment. A year ago, he came back after a three-month hiatus due to a right shin fracture and hit .365 with a 1.041 OPS in 18 September games for the Astros ahead of the playoffs.
“He’s proven that he can do it,” Kelly said. “But probably the more important part is just the simplicity of his swing, one, and then the routine. He doesn’t need a lot to get going. And then just the pitch selection. I don’t think you lose that. I think sometimes you lose some feel of the swing and you lose some feel of your moves a little bit, but I think the way that he’s been able to control the zone throughout his whole career -- especially the last two years -- just the quality of the at-bat and the pitch selection, I think, is still going to be there.
“He prepares really well. He understands pitch shapes and movements. I think he’s going to get back in there and give you a really good quality at-bat, so there’s not a ton of concern like maybe there would be for some other guys.”
There is also the fact that Tucker was in a groove prior to landing on the IL.
On Sept. 2, when the calf injury forced Tucker to exit early, he was 2-for-3 with a home run. That gave him a .327/.422/.618 slash line with four homers, four doubles and eight walks in a 15-game span before being sidelined. And while on the IL, Tucker has been able to continue hitting regularly in an effort to stay in rhythm.
“Guys are so in tune with how their body feels,” Kelly said, “and how their body is moving to the pitch and the shape, and what their eyes are telling them. I think guys remember that. They remember that feeling. They remember that movement in the box. So, for him having some success – getting hurt was unfortunate – but you can kind of go back into the Rolodex a little bit and be like, ‘OK, this is what I was feeling.’ He didn’t lose it. He just hasn’t done it.”