Bryzzo's May-or-Break month for Cubs
There are two ways to look at the Cubs' anemic offensive start to the season.
One is to let the numbers tell the putrid story. Such as: The club's 49 hits through 10 games were fewer than any other 10-game stretch by any other team in Major League history, going back at least to 1901, according to Cubs' historian Ed Hartig.
And here's another: Aside from 44 runs in three blowout victories, their average output was less than three runs in the other 22 contests through Thursday night.
Which brings us to the other perspective: Despite all that struggle, the Cubs were only four games out of first place. At 11-14, there is ample time to turn things around.
And the month of May very well could be the turning point, if former Most Valuable Player Kris Bryant's history is any predictor. In May, he usually heats up, with his 37 home runs and 91 RBIs translating to a norm of seven homers and 18 RBI - easily eclipsing his typical four homer/12 RBI rate in other months.
On top of that, May likewise has traditionally been first baseman Anthony Rizzo's strongest month. The month has brought out his highest on-base percentage (. 383) and slugging percentage (. 525). The result: A .908 career OPS for Rizzo in May, which is 60 points higher than his cumulative OPS in other months.
This season, Bryant is at or near the top of just about all the squad's offensive categories. That bodes well, especially after an abysmal, injury-marred 2020.
In the Cubs' first 11 wins, he was slashing .425/.489/.850, all tops among Cub batters. In the 12 losses in which he played, his OPS was nearly halved, to .709, from his 1.339 OPS in triumphs; during losses, he whiffed 16 times in 44 at bats, more than double his strikeout rate (six Ks in 40 at bats) in victories.
The upshot: when KB makes contact, the Cubs' prospects soar like his patented uppercut that has sent plenty of balls into the bleachers. When he misses, the squad's chances nose-dive.
How Bryant and Rizzo fare in May will have a major influence on whether the Cubs rise or fall in 2021. As Bryzzo goes, so may go the North Siders.
Trivia timeout: Can you name the Hall of Fame player who was mockingly dubbed "Mr. May" by Yankees owner George Steinbrenner? (The thinly veiled insult was a play on Reggie Jackson's nickname, "Mr. October.")
Mercedes is a Marvel: How off-the-charts is White Sox rookie phenom Yermin Mercedes?
In Game 2 of Thursday's doubleheader against Detroit, he hit a titanic home run, smacked the ball hard to the outfield two other times (both outs) - and saw his batting average drop from .432 to .423.
No one in the Tigers' lineup was within 150 points of Mercedes' MLB-leading average.
Even peeling off his record-setting 8-for-8 start to the season, he had 25 hits over his next 70 at bats. That's a .357 mark. The only other American Leaguer with a higher batting average than that is the Los Angeles Angels' Mike Trout. Through Thursday, Trout was at .420.
Trivia answer: Dave Winfield. The knock from Steinbrenner wasn't entirely out of line: During his 22-year career, Winfield slammed more home runs, knocked in more runs and stole more bases in May than any other month.
• Matt Baron supplements his baseball brainpower with Retrosheet.org for research.