The Cubs had a successful homestand, going 4-2, though they had some real ups and downs in scoring runs, first crushing the Padres and then being crushed by the Cardinals. They outscored San Diego 35-12 in sweeping them, then got outscored by the Cardinals 24-7, though managed to win the final game against St. Louis.
That said, let’s see who was hot and not for the Cubs over the past week.
Three up
Dansby Swanson had himself a week in just three games
Over the six-game homestand, Swanson batted .409/.409/1.136 (9-for-22) with a double, five home runs, 11 RBI and eight
runs scored.
The thing is, that split up in this way: 8-for-13 against the Padres with all five of the homers, then 1-for-9 against the Cardinals. It’s a weird way to have a possible Player of the Week performance. We’ll find out whether Dansby gets that honor later today.
In the meantime, enjoy his three-homer game vs. the Padres [VIDEO].
Pete Crow-Armstrong gets an All-Star nod and has another fine week
PCA is another candidate for Player of the Week, which would be his third this year (along with his NL Player of the Month for June award).
Over the six games, he batted .474/.615/.842 (9-for-19) with a double, two home runs, five walks, six runs scored and three stolen bases. That gives him 19 home runs and 23 steals for the year, on pace for about 35 homers and 40 steals. His .383 OBP ranks ninth in the NL, his .527 SLG ranks eighth, and his .910 OPS is fifth.
And he continues to play stellar defense. Here’s a sliding catch he made in the fog on Saturday [VIDEO].
Alex Bregman has shown signs of coming out of his season-long slump
Bregman batted .261/.393/.478 (6-for-23) over the week with two doubles, a home run, five RBI and five walks. Even with his batting drought, he continues to draw tons of walks. His season OBP of .340 is decent enough, and over his last 23 games it’s .377.
His three-run homer last Tuesday helped galvanize that 9-7 win [VIDEO].
Three down
David Peterson, yikes
Peterson’s first start, against the Brewers in Milwaukee, was pretty good.
His second, Friday against the Cardinals, was… I don’t really have words for how bad it was. He would get ahead of hitters and not put them away. He’d get two easy outs in an inning and then get pounded.
Maybe it’s the Cardinals. Peterson has a 19.64 ERA (16 earned runs in 7.1 innings) vs. St. Louis this year and a 5.40 ERA (42 earned runs in 70 innings) against everyone else. Okay, 5.40 isn’t great but it’s a lot better than 19.64.
Peterson is scheduled to start Thursday against the Orioles in Baltimore. Do better, David.
Ian Happ is slumping again
Happ had kept his OPS in the .800 area for a while, which is a good range.
Now it’s at .768 after he hit .143/.217/.190 (3-for-23) over the six games with seven strikeouts.
The good news for Happ is that three games this week will be in Cincinnati, where he loves to hit. In 63 career games at GABP, Happ has batted .291/.393/.619 (65-for-223) with 18 home runs. The 1.012 OPS is by far his best at any ballpark, including Wrigley Field.
Hopefully three games there will help send Happ into the All-Star break on a high note.
Nico Hoerner just can’t seem to turn the corner
Nico again had a mediocre week, batting .227/.280/.273 (5-for-22) with one extra-base hit (a double). He hasn’t stolen a base since June 2.
He continues to play solid defense. Here’s hoping the All-Star break will get Nico back on track.
