Cubs Quick Hits: Addison Russell Showing Best Plate Discipline on Team
The Cubs are a team known for their ability to lay off bad pitches. Anthony Rizzo, Ben Zobrist, and Kris Bryant, to name a few, have shown impressive pitch salience in years past. But so far this season, Addison Russell leads the team in outside the zone swing percentage (O-Swing%) with only a 22.2 percent rate.
| Player | O-Swing% |
| Russell | 22.2% |
| Zobrist | 22.5% |
| Schwarber | 25.5% |
| Heyward | 25.8% |
| Bryant | 25.9% |
| Rizzo | 30.7% |
| Contreras | 40.7% |
Despite a team best O-Swing%, however, the young Cubs shortstop has the lowest walk rate on the squad, largely because opposing pitchers have thrown him a first-pitch strike in nearly 68 percent of his plate appearances. If Russell maintains this discipline, expect both the walks and hard contact to increase, as well as his overall offensive production.