Soler ready to do some damage for Chicago Cubs

Jorge Soler is on the move, and the Cubs are moving on in the National League playoffs against the New York Mets.

While he was not solely responsible for the Cubs' success against the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL division series, Soler's potent bat and strong throwing arm were significant factors.

Let's start with the arm.

While the 23-year-old rookie has had his share of misadventures in right field this season, his arm is strong and accurate.

Rallying in Game 4 of the NLDS on Tuesday at Wrigley Field, the Cardinals tied the game at 4-4 with two outs in the sixth inning on pinch hitter Brandon Moss' RBI single to right.

Catcher Tony Cruz, who cut the Cubs' lead to 4-3 with a run-scoring double earlier in the sixth, also tried to score on Moss' hit.

"We needed to test the outfield," said St. Louis manager Mike Matheny.

Instead of taking a 5-4 lead and possibly sending the series back to Busch Stadium for Game 5, the Cardinals were burned by Soler's perfect one-hop throw to the plate that catcher Miguel Montero gloved to tag out Cruz.

Soler's big defensive play changed the momentum of the game, and solo home runs by Anthony Rizzo in the bottom of the sixth and Kyle Schwarber in the seventh sparked the Cubs to a 6-4 victory.

Earlier in the series, Soler was doing his damage on offense.

The 6-foot-4, 215-pounder set a major-league record by reaching base safely in his first nine postseason plate appearances. Employed as a pinch hitter in Game 1 of the NLDS, Soler drew a walk.

Getting the start in Game 2 and batting second, Soler was 2-for-2 with a 2-run homer and 2 walks. In Game 3, he was 2-for-2 with another 2-run shot and 2 more walks.

The streak ended in Soler's first at-bat in Game 4 when he struck out swinging.

Soler has immense power, so the 2 home runs in the NLDS are no surprise.

The 6 walks in 13 trips to the plate are a huge surprise. During the regular season, Soler drew only 32 walks in 404 plate appearances.

"I've got tremendous confidence right now," Soler said through a translator. "I'm seeing the ball really well, and I'm just trying to get on base and help our team win."

Like most young power hitters, Soler was guilty of chasing bad pitches and taking big swings. He picked the perfect time to make an adjustment.

"That's what happens with hitters," manager Joe Maddon said. "If they're going through a bad moment, they want to chase things. They want to study more video or they want to do something differently, but it pretty much comes down to stop swinging at balls, organize your strike zone.

"Once you organize your strike zone and you accept walks, then at that point you should be able to hit pretty close to your potential."

• Follow Scot's reports throughout the playoffs @scotgregor.