Waffle house: Pederson happy to snap slump
When Joc Pederson connected on a solo home run in the eighth inning of Wednesday's loss to Milwaukee, he let off a scream toward the Cubs dugout, letting off some frustration after an 0-for-15 start at the plate this season.
When he got back to the dugout, he was awarded a prize - a waffle maker (or at least a waffle maker box) from teammate Ian Happ.
"We haven't really been getting too many hits as a team," Pederson said. "So I texted him and a couple of (other teammates) last night. He said, 'Yeah, I'm bringing the waffle maker.' You know, going to waffle some balls. It was pretty funny."
Pederson might have been the MLB MVP of spring training, but he talked about how everything going great in the spring might have contributed to the early slump with the Cubs.
"I made some adjustments in the offseason," he said. "In spring training. they worked out really well. So when things are going right, it's hard to understand what the fixes are and what the adjustments are, because I kind of changed some things up.
"Then you hit a little bit added pressure and you're kind of searching to get that feel back and it's not the same adjustments it has been in the past, so that's kind of been a new learning curve. Just getting back comfortable in the box again. I thought today from my side was productive. I felt really good in my second at-bat and it carried over."
Of course, one question remains: Was the waffle maker a gift? Will he be passing out fresh waffles to his teammates Thursday before the game in Pittsburgh?
"Hope we're making a lot of waffles," Pederson said. "I don't know. It's Happer's, so I think I rented it for a minute. We'll see. Hopefully we're passing out waffles soon, all of us. It will be fun to watch."
Twitter: @McGrawDHBulls