CHICAGO – In the hours leading up to Wednesday’s game, Cubs manager Craig Counsell had a chat with slugger Seiya Suzuki. The general message delivered was that every game is a chance to turn the page on anything that happened a day earlier.
“I talked to Seiya about this today,” Counsell said. “You get to show up the next day and the, ‘Get to start over and have a great day’ is presented to you.”
Suzuki then went out and had a solid day against the Athletics.
In a 5-4 loss to the A’s in 10 innings, Suzuki launched his first home run in nearly a month and made a pair of impressive defensive plays in right field. It was the kind of all-around performance that put the Cubs outfielder’s full capabilities on display, which is why the last few weeks have been particularly perplexing.
Suzuki’s performance could not, however, halt an A’s comeback against Chicago’s bullpen or the Cubs’ eighth consecutive loss at home. He was waiting in the on-deck circle when Alex Bregman lined out to right field to end the game.
Facing A’s lefty Jeffrey Springs in the second inning, Suzuki connected with a 3-1 fastball and sent it rocketing off the bat at 108.9 mph, per Statcast. The way Suzuki casually finished his swing, moving his bat into his right hand before dropping it to the ground, made it clear that he knew the baseball he just launched with it was now a souvenir for the fans in the left-center-field bleachers.
Suzuki had waited weeks for that feeling again.
Prior to Wednesday, Suzuki’s last home run came in the fourth inning on May 8 against the Rangers on the road. He had not homered at Wrigley Field since May 4 against the Reds.