In 2016 Addison Russell broke out. Blasting 21 home runs, driving in 95, and playing elite level defense while earning his first All-Star nod. He was overshadowed by the likes of Anthony Rizzo, Dexter Fowler, and Kris Bryant, but that is when his name was first tied to future MVP considerations.
“I have him pegged as an MVP,” Rizzo said of Russell’s future. “He knows it. I tell him every day, I have the biggest baseball crush on him since he got called up. The way he plays, the way he moves. I have him pegged to win the MVP one year for sure.”
Russell was incredible in 2016, backed it up with three playoff homers including a grand slam in game six of the World Series.
But when the calendar flipped to 2017, and domestic issues, Russell’s production slipped. Defensively he was as strong as ever, but just about every measurable offensive metric fell off. With production wavering and the club in desperate need of adding quality starting pitching, trade rumors began to swirl.
“There was a lot of trade talk,” Russell said during the offseason. “My initial thoughts were, I hope it doesn’t happen, but wherever I go, I’m going to try to bring what I bring to the table here. It’s a good thing that it doesn’t have to be that way. I’m happy being in a Cubs uniform, I want to be in a Cubs uniform, for sure. But there was some talk out there. If I got traded, then I got traded, but that’s not the case.”
So Addison worked his tail off. Doing everything he could to make sure, wherever he plays, he would be a big factor in their offense. The biggest keys, improving his mental game and just staying on the field.
Limiting off-the-field issues will help him mentally, and certain strength and conditioning efforts can help ensure lingering issues (shoulder) don’t flare up and limit his susceptibility to future injury. Injuries limited Addison to 385 plate appearances in 2017, 213 less than 2016.
Getting Addison 600 plate appearances in 2018 will be important, and so far this season he is proving he deserves them.
Yes, it is early, but Russell has been one of the few Cubs regulars that have consistently put the bat on the ball. So far, Addison has hit .278/.435/.389 with a pair of doubles, four free passes, only two strikeouts, and even stole third base.
Oh, he’s also doing things like this daily as well.
It is early to toss MVP talk on anyone (maybe except Bryce Harper), and he will, of course, need to play at an even higher level here on out. But watching him play, seeing his movements, there’s a specialness to everything he’s doing right now. It’s that little spark you get when an already special player finally gets it.
There has been a lot of “the sky is falling” type of talk in Cubs circles. If you are searching for optimism, focus your attention on Addison Russell. He’s a future MVP.
