Kyle Tucker's slump appears to be over - but can he avoid another IL stint?

Just a few weeks ago, a full-blown meltdown was occurring in Chicago Cubs land, as superstar right fielder Kyle Tucker suffered through the worst slump of his big-league career. The team pointed to a finger issue stemming all the way back from June, and Craig Counsell elected to rest Tucker for a few days at the conclusion of the all-important five-game series with the Brewers in August.

Well, it's safe to say that brief hiatus did its job, because Tucker has returned to the Cubs' lineup with a vengeance.

At this moment, Tucker is dealing with another injury scare, as he has been held out of the lineup the past few games with a calf injury. There's no telling when he might return, though the team remains hopeful he'll avoid an IL stint (though, it should be said, the Cubs should not force him to play through injury like last time). We should know more ahead of Saturday afternoon's game.

Assuming he returns to health quickly, the Tucker of recent weeks has been just what the doctor ordered for an ailing Cubs offense.

Time off seems to have done the trick for Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker

Since the final game of that Brewers series on Aug. 21, Tucker has played in 11 games, and he's produced at the level we're used to seeing from "King Tuck".

In that stretch, the All-Star right fielder is hitting .400/.489/.800 with four home runs, 11 RBI, and a 12.8 percent walk rate. You shouldn't be surprised to learn he leads the team in OPS (1.289), ISO (.400), wOBA (.534), and wRC+ (253).

After much noise was made about his seemingly waning ability to produce hard contact during his slump, Tucker is back to absolutely crushing the ball. His 48.4 percent hard-hit rate ranks 17th in baseball over that stretch, tied with the equally-beleaguered Ian Happ for first on the team.

He's also sorted out his batted ball profile, drastically cutting his number of ground balls while elevating his fly ball (38.7 percent) and line drive (22.6 percent) rates. And, just anecdotally, it feels like the days of him weakly rolling over grounders to the right side of the infield are a thing of the past.

No matter how you slice it, Tucker has roudned back into form at the most crucial point of the Cubs' season. Yes, they need to be cautious with his lingering calf issue, lest they risk another injury-borne slump, but he's the most important bat in the lineup.

If this recent version of King Tuck is the one the Cubs get in October, a deep playoff run may yet still be on the table.