Chicago Cubs: Anthony Rizzo is enjoying a fantastic campaign

Rizzo is having a great season at the plate

Rizzo entered the 2017 season after slashing .360/.484/.600 with three doubles, a home run and five RBI in the World Series. If not for the clutch hit of Ben Zobrist in Game 7, perhaps Rizzo would have won MVP honors. Nevertheless, it is apparent Rizzo has carried his postseason success into 2017.

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In 93 games, Rizzo is slashing .254/.378/.510 with 23 home runs and 60 RBI. That means the lefty is on pace to hit 40 home runs and drive in 105 runs. While 40 home runs would set a career high for Rizzo, the 105 RBI would fit nicely into the body of work the Silver Slugger has accomplished recently. Over the last three seasons, Rizzo is averaging 96 RBI per campaign, while topping out at 109 just last season.

What is most impressive about Rizzo this season is the fact his walk rate is the highest it has been since the 2011 season at 13.4%. At the same time, Rizzo’s strikeout percentage has fallen off the table this season. Currently, it sits at 11.2%, almost four percent lower than last season.

According to Fangraphs, Rizzo is hitting 1.3% more fly balls this season. Perhaps, that could account for the increased home runs. Looking deeper, one can see that Rizzo is centering the ball up more this season. Fangraphs shows us 33.3% of the balls hit by Rizzo go to center field. This is important because it means Rizzo is squaring more balls up.

One thing that could be of concern moving forward is the fact Rizzo’s soft contact percentage is up two percent compared to last season.