SEATTLE – Long before rookie first baseman Michael Busch went on a four-game home run streak, he had a reputation for taking mature at-bats.
“Even when the Dodgers drafted him, that was the calling card, is it’s going to be a really good quality at bat,” Cubs hitting coach Dustin Kelly said in a recent conversation with the Sun-Times. “He doesn’t chase a ton, he’s going to get pitches to drive, he’s got really good bat speed.”
In his first season as a fixture in a major-league starting lineup, and his first with the Cubs, Busch’s approach has earned him a 1.087 OPS. And in the Cubs’ 3-2 win Sunday against the Mariners, Busch extended his home run streak with a two-run shot to right center.
“You hit four homers in four straight games – you don’t say that very often about anybody,” manager Craig Counsell said. “So for a [rookie] to do it, really driving the bus for us offensively the last couple days.”
Busch became just the 23rd Cubs player to homer in four straight games, according to the team. The franchise record is five, with Christopher Morel, Sammy Sosa, Ryne Sandberg and Hack Wilson sharing the high watermark.
“He has the makeup of, ‘I’m going to have my at-bat, and I’m going to put myself in a good position, and then whatever happens happens,’” Kelly said. “And it’s a veteran type of at-bat, coming from a young kid that doesn’t have a ton of experience.”
Busch credits quality travel ball coaches for helping instill a mindset that prioritized getting on base. He took that into his college career at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Then the Dodgers selected him No. 31 overall in the 2019 draft.
The Cubs traded for Busch over the winter to help strengthen their lineup against right-handed pitching, and as a long-term solution at first base. The team eventually re-signed left-handed hitter Cody Bellinger. But while Bellinger has had a slow offensive start to the season, Busch’s impact has been obvious.
“The guys in here have made it super easy,” Busch said of the pressure of becoming an everyday player overnight. “From the day I showed up at Cubs Con, a lot of the guys were super welcoming – players, staff. It relieved some of that a little bit. And you’re just able to go out there and play and compete and try to win a ballgame.”
Already, Busch has shown an ability to adjust. he has seen a lot of fastballs this year as pitchers have tried to challenge him high and outside.
In general, elevated fastballs with high velocity can be tough for right-hand-dominant left-handed hitters, who are tempted to pull across with their front hand. Busch entered this season knowing that high heat would have to be a focus.
He takes swings in the cage with his bat path in mind and has a whole set of drills, including one-handed swings with each hand to promote barrel awareness and direction.
It’s a small sample size, but Busch entered Sunday hitting .500 against high and outside fastballs in the shadow zone. And if a pitcher misses over the plate, they fall into a hot zone for his swing.
“I think that’s a tough pitch for a lot of hitters,” Busch said of elevated fastballs. “Especially when they’re flying it up there at 95, 96 [mph]. They do a pretty good job. So just being able to take that, maybe foul a couple of them off, or even put a couple of them in play.”
Busch has hit five home runs this year, on a variety of different pitches: fastball down and in, slider middle-middle, fastball up and in, slider down and in.
On Sunday, he homered off a low changeup from Mariners starter Luis Castillo in the fourth inning. After providing the majority of the Cubs’ runs, Busch was part of three defensive plays that sealed the Cubs’ win.
The Cubs got out of the seventh and eighth innings with infield double plays. Then in the ninth, closer Adbert Alzolay threw over to Busch to pick off Mariners star Julio Rodríguez, ending the game.