MLB rumors: Juan Soto trade buzz, Cubs sleeping giant awakes, Angels trying to save more
- The Angels put another player on waivers
- A Cubs sleeping giant has officially arrived at the perfect time
- Juan Soto trade buzz could end once and for all
By Josh Wilson
Seiya Suzuki has made his 2023 arrival for the Cubs just in time
Seiya Suzuki was not having a bad season for the Chicago Cubs, per se, before August and September. But he was not following up his rookie 2022 season with as much growth in the power department as fans were hoping for in his sophomore run.
Suzuki, from opening day to the end of July, was remarkably available for the team, but his slug was .383 after closing out at .433 last year. In those first 88 games, Suzuki hit eight home runs. Since then, in just 28 games, he's hit eight more, with a slug of .718 and an OPS of 1.111.
Suzuki has officially woken up, and just in time for the Cubs stretch run in September as they chase the NL Central win. Suzuki also just wrapped up his fourth-straight multi-hit game on Wednesday afternoon, following up the four hits he put up on Tuesday night.
It's Suzuki's longest streak of multi-hit games in his young MLB career.
Chicago, after a win and Brewers loss, sits 3.5 games back from the Brewers for the NL Central lead. Chicago has a 91.6% chance of making the playoffs and a 32.5% chance of winning the NL Central according to Fangraphs' model.
Of course, the final series of the year is Cubs at Brewers. It could be a wild one. And if Suzuki continues to hit the way he has, the Brewers might be in for a rough ride.