Chicago Cubs Slugger Powering Team Into Playoffs

The return to form of Chicago Cubs slugger Seiya Suzuki has the team firmly in the playoff hunt in the final stretch of the season.

It certainly looks like Seiya Suzuki has returned to form as one of the best batters in the Chicago Cubs lineup.

After sitting four games to start the month of August with the focus on trying to reset his swing mechanics, the right fielder is starting to heat up at the right time.

In his last seven games, Suzuki is hitting .280/.269/.520 with two home runs and three RBI across 25 at-bats. That's a complete turnaround from his 187 at-bat stretch during June 2 to August 4 that saw him post a .591 OPS.

"I feel like I’m being really aggressive at the plate and I’m making those right decisions,” Suzuki told Casey Drottar of MLB.com. “I feel really good right now."

And he should.

The slumping slugger was putting a lot of pressure on the rest of the lineup to step up and on manager David Ross to figure out the best lineup for success.

That no longer is an issue at the moment as Suzuki used his time off to get his game right.

"But I think it was really great for me because I was able to learn a lot of things while not playing. That can really benefit you as a player in the long run, as well. I’m glad I was able to use that time wisely," he said.

Ross also notices something different about his slugger as well. He thinks Suzuki is back to having fun playing baseball.

"I’ve never seen him smile running around the bases, yelling in the dugout,” the manager said when commenting on Suzuki's home run. “He’s just having a really good time.”

It comes at the perfect moment for the Cubs who hold the last Wild Card spot in the National League with 39 games remaining entering their series with the Detroit Tigers on Monday.