Addison Russell spins, starts 6-4-3 double play in blink of an eye
The Chicago Cubs gave Starlin Castro every opportunity to get on track as their starting shortstop. That was, until two weeks ago, when they decided to turn the reins over to their shortstop of the future, Addison Russell.
The decision to move both Russell to his more natural position has paid off quite well for Chicago on multiple levels. More comfort in the field has led to more confidence at the plate for the 21-year-old rookie. Over his last eight game, Russell is hitting .393/.414/.786 with a pair of home runs.
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Russell is also clearly a better defender than Castro, and those defensive skills were on full display again in Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to San Francisco.
In the third inning, Russell started one of the most impressive double plays we’ve seen all season on a hot smash from San Francisco’s Buster Posey. Russell was forced to field the one-hopper on the backhand and appeared to be going to his knee to stop his momentum. However, Russell somehow managed to pivot and reverse spin in one insanely quick motion, before unloading a perfect throw to second.
That was in real time, folks. The spin was seriously crazy, as was the quick release on the throw.
Even with the catcher Posey running, Russell and the Cubs needed every split second he saved to turn the 6-4-3 double play. And yes, that was Starlin Castro now playing second base helping turn it over. That’s the nice thing about having two shortstop caliber arms playing in the same middle infield. They’ll pick up a few extra outs on plays just like this, which makes for a happy pitching staff.
Now that the Cubs have the athletically and defensively superior Russell playing his natural position, and now that Castro has proven capable at second, their infield defense is immediately upgraded.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
